Raymond James Research Analysts Reduce Earnings Estimates for Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS)

Fortis Inc. (TSE:FTS) – Stock analysts at Raymond James lowered their Q3 2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Fortis in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, April 25th. Raymond James analyst D. Quezada now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $0.79 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.80. The consensus estimate for Fortis’ current full-year earnings is $3.21 per share. Raymond James also issued estimates for Fortis’ Q4 2024 earnings at $0.86 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $3.19 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.94 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $0.68 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.84 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.88 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $3.34 EPS.

Fortis (TSE:FTS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported C$0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of C$0.72. The business had revenue of C$2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of C$3.22 billion. Fortis had a return on equity of 7.41% and a net margin of 13.66%.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on FTS. National Bankshares lifted their target price on Fortis from C$52.00 to C$55.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Fortis from C$53.00 to C$50.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on Fortis from C$49.00 to C$50.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Fortis from C$60.00 to C$56.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Fortis from C$58.50 to C$58.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Fortis presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of C$56.77.

Fortis Stock Performance

Shares of TSE FTS opened at C$53.72 on Friday. 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$26.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.33, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.17. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is C$53.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$54.18. Fortis has a 52-week low of C$49.82 and a 52-week high of C$62.00.

Fortis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $0.59 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.39%. Fortis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Brian Slocum purchased 1,888 shares of Fortis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of C$39.18 per share, with a total value of C$73,971.65. In related news, Senior Officer Ronald Hinsley sold 972 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$38.79, for a total transaction of C$37,706.21. Also, Director Brian Slocum acquired 1,888 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of C$39.18 per share, with a total value of C$73,971.65. Insiders purchased 2,851 shares of company stock valued at $111,115 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.04% of the company’s stock.

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.