Janus Henderson Group PLC Acquires 24,800 Shares of Fortis $FTS

Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Fortis (NYSE:FTS) by 103.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 48,777 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,800 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Fortis were worth $2,714,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Fortis by 41.0% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,658 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,355 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in 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. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Fortis by 26.0% during the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,951,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $220,277,000 after buying an additional 815,349 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Fortis by 37.7% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 333,219 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $18,590,000 after buying an additional 91,219 shares during the period. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new position in shares of Fortis in the first quarter worth about $16,684,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.77% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on FTS shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Fortis in a report on Friday, July 17th. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Fortis in a research note on Tuesday. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Fortis in a research report on Tuesday. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lowered Fortis from an “outperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Fortis from $61.00 to $60.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $66.33.

Fortis Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE FTS opened at $56.15 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $28.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.73 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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $57.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.56.

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.76 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Fortis will post 2.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Fortis Announces Dividend

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 issued a $0.64 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio is 72.87%.

Fortis Company 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.