Ninepoint Partners LP Makes New $5.60 Million Investment in Fortis $FTS

Ninepoint Partners LP purchased a new stake in Fortis (NYSE:FTS) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 97,861 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,601,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in FTS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Fortis during the fourth quarter worth about $335,980,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new position in shares of Fortis during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $114,523,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Fortis in the second quarter valued at $111,451,000. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in Fortis by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 19,898,613 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,034,545,000 after purchasing an additional 1,666,481 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of Fortis by 4.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 35,241,451 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,966,121,000 after buying an additional 1,557,443 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.77% of the company’s stock.

Fortis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE FTS opened at $56.26 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $57.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.78 and a beta of 0.43. Fortis has a 52-week low of $48.64 and a 52-week high of $59.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.01. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.16% and a net margin of 14.17%.The firm had revenue of $1.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.76 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Fortis will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be paid a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FTS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Fortis from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 23rd. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered Fortis from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $50.00 price target on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Fortis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.33.

About Fortis

Fortis Inc is a Canadian diversified electric and gas utility holding company headquartered in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Through a portfolio of regulated utility subsidiaries, the company develops, owns and operates electricity and natural gas transmission, distribution and generation assets. Fortis serves customers across multiple jurisdictions in Canada, the United States and the Caribbean, focusing on the delivery of safe, reliable energy to residential, commercial and industrial users.

The company’s core activities include operation and maintenance of transmission and distribution networks, ownership of generation facilities, and investment in grid modernization and system resilience.