Cidel Asset Management Inc. Has $51.93 Million Holdings in Fortis $FTS

Cidel Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Fortis (NYSE:FTS) by 7.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 906,780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 74,436 shares during the period. Fortis accounts for approximately 2.5% of Cidel Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Cidel Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Fortis were worth $51,930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Fortis by 4.6% in 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 acquiring an additional 1,557,443 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd grew its position in shares of Fortis by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 19,898,613 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,034,545,000 after purchasing an additional 1,666,481 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its position in shares of Fortis by 1.4% during the second quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 9,436,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $535,234,000 after purchasing an additional 129,466 shares in the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its stake in Fortis by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 9,163,354 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $461,748,000 after purchasing an additional 326,212 shares during the period. Finally, Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its holdings in Fortis by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 8,564,134 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $445,335,000 after purchasing an additional 677,226 shares in the last quarter. 57.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Fortis Price Performance

Shares of Fortis stock opened at $55.62 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $28.41 billion, a PE ratio of 22.52 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $56.69 and a 200 day moving average of $56.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. Fortis has a 12 month low of $48.68 and a 12 month high of $59.40.

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

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th were given a $0.64 dividend. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 19th. Fortis’s payout ratio is currently 73.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on FTS. TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets reissued 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 report on Saturday, May 23rd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Fortis from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $50.00 price target on shares of Fortis in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.33.

Fortis Profile

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.