Vise Technologies Inc. Takes Position in Fortis $FTS

Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fortis (NYSE:FTS) in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 22,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,280,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Fortis in the fourth quarter valued at about $335,980,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board acquired a new stake in shares of Fortis during the second quarter valued at about $114,523,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Fortis during the second quarter valued at about $111,451,000. FIL Ltd raised its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,666,481 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Fortis by 4.6% in the 1st 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 during the period. 57.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Fortis Price Performance

Shares of FTS opened at $54.94 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $28.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.24 and a beta of 0.43. Fortis has a fifty-two week low of $48.64 and a fifty-two 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. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $57.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.58.

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

Fortis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio is 73.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. TD Securities reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Fortis from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Fortis from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating 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 given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fortis presently has an average 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.