BMO Capital Markets Raises Fortis (TSE:FTS) Price Target to C$58.50

Fortis (TSE:FTS) had its price target hoisted by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from C$58.00 to C$58.50 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a “market perform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 7.32% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on FTS. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Fortis from C$49.00 to C$50.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. CIBC lifted their price target on shares of Fortis from C$56.00 to C$57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James dropped their price target on shares of Fortis from C$62.00 to C$59.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$60.00 to C$56.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Fortis from C$53.00 to C$50.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Fortis has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of C$56.88.

Fortis Price Performance

TSE FTS traded up C$0.15 on Thursday, reaching C$54.51. The company had a trading volume of 298,419 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,544,675. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 128.76. The stock has a market capitalization of C$26.87 billion, a PE ratio of 17.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.17. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is C$53.15 and its 200 day moving average price is C$54.17. Fortis has a 12 month low of C$49.82 and a 12 month high of C$62.00.

Fortis (TSE:FTS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported C$0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of C$0.72. Fortis had a net margin of 13.66% and a return on equity of 7.41%. The firm had revenue of C$2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of C$3.22 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Fortis will post 3.2119367 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fortis

In other news, Senior Officer Ronald Hinsley sold 972 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$38.79, for a total value of C$37,706.21. In other news, Director Brian Slocum purchased 1,888 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of C$39.18 per share, with a total value of C$73,971.65. Also, Senior Officer Ronald Hinsley sold 972 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$38.79, for a total transaction of C$37,706.21. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 2,851 shares of company stock worth $111,115. 0.04% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Fortis Company Profile

Fortis Inc operates as an electric and gas utility company in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean countries. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to approximately 447,000 retail customers in southeastern Arizona; and 103,000 retail customers in Arizona's Mohave and Santa Cruz counties with an aggregate capacity of 3,408 megawatts (MW), including 68 MW of solar capacity and 250 MV of wind capacity.