Fortis (FTS) versus The Competition Head to Head Review

Fortis (NYSE:FTS) is one of 103 public companies in the “Electric Utilities” industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its rivals? We will compare Fortis to similar businesses based on the strength of its valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, risk and earnings.

Volatility & Risk

Fortis has a beta of 0.42, indicating that its share price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fortis’ rivals have a beta of -2.37, indicating that their average share price is 337% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Fortis pays an annual dividend of $1.82 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Fortis pays out 71.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies pay a dividend yield of 3.1% and pay out 63.8% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Fortis has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Fortis lags its rivals as a dividend stock, given its lower dividend yield and higher payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares Fortis and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Fortis	14.66%	7.37%	2.40%
Fortis Competitors	13.89%	9.77%	3.23%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

57.8% of Fortis shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.0% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are held by institutional investors. 6.2% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Fortis and its rivals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Fortis	0	6	2	0	2.25
Fortis Competitors	1426	6544	5520	140	2.32

Fortis presently has a consensus target price of $66.67, indicating a potential upside of 12.68%. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies have a potential upside of 3.89%. Given Fortis’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Fortis is more favorable than its rivals.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Fortis and its rivals gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Fortis	$8.71 billion	$1.29 billion	23.29
Fortis Competitors	$13.64 billion	$1.54 billion	20.01

Fortis’ rivals have higher revenue and earnings than Fortis. Fortis is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Fortis rivals beat Fortis on 11 of the 15 factors compared.

About Fortis

Fortis Inc. is a Canadian utility company that owns and operates regulated electric and natural gas businesses. Its activities include electricity generation, transmission and distribution, as well as natural gas distribution and energy infrastructure services. The company serves customers across Canada, the United States and the Caribbean through a group of regional utilities. Its operations include electric utilities and natural gas businesses serving communities in provinces such as British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as U.S. states including Arizona and New York.