Hey Sharon,
Fortis is one of those stocks that we are comfortable buying at any price. Why? It is one of the most reliable and successful utilities in the country. If you take a look at its chart, it has been on a slow and steady upwards trend for the past 20 years. It also has the second highest dividend growth streak in the country.
That being said, as a utility company the share price is influenced by interest rates. As rates rise, utilities tend to suffer. Over the past few months, expectations have been for a rate cut and today another analyst estimated that the BoC will cut rates twice by end of year. That is good news for utilities and is most likely why Fortis has been on a steady uptrend the past few months.
From a valuation standpoint, the company isn't cheap, and it is trading slightly above historical averages. As a blue chip stock, Fortis doesn't deviate too far from its historical P/E average so the recent uptrend does lead us to believe it is getting a little pricey. The stock however, is not overbought and is in neutral territory with respect to technicals.
Would we avoid the stock? Not necessarily. As alluded to, Fortis isn't a stock you try and time. You can buy and forget.
At today's price, our suggestion would be to buy half position today, and then see what happens over the next month or so before topping up.
Mat