FTS vs. WTRG: Fortis vs. Essential Utilities Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but FTS is classified in Electric Utilities while WTRG is classified in Water Utilities.

Company profile comparison for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Profile Item	FTS	WTRG
Name	Fortis Inc.	Essential Utilities Inc.
Country/Region	Canada	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Electric Utilities	Water Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Electric Utilities	Water Utilities
Market Capitalization	31.00 billion USD	13.02 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	January 5, 2010	March 17, 1980
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

FTS

WTRG

GSPC

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
Total Return (1Y)	19.13%	19.07%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	17.59%	13.95%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	9.53%	2.39%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

FTS

WTRG

GSPC

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	14.85%	22.14%
Beta (5Y)	0.40	0.61
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-30.13%	-36.53%
Avg. Volume (3M)	879.23K	2.38M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FTS and WTRG are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.00	0.67
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	1.53	1.08

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 8.13% is around its peer norm for ROE, while Fortis (FTS) at 7.55% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker returns on shareholders’ equity.

FTS

Utilities industry group

7.55%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
FTS: 7.55%
Min: 2.17%

WTRG

Utilities industry group

8.13%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
WTRG: 8.13%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 21.79% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Fortis (FTS) at 15.01%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

FTS

Utilities industry group

15.01%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
FTS: 15.01%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

WTRG

Utilities industry group

21.79%

Max: 28.78%
WTRG: 21.79%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 38.94% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Fortis (FTS) at 30.69%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

FTS

Utilities industry group

30.69%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
FTS: 30.69%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

WTRG

Utilities industry group

38.94%

Max: 53.83%
WTRG: 38.94%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
ROE (TTM)	7.55%	8.13%
ROA (TTM)	2.93%	3.00%
Net Margin (TTM)	15.01%	21.79%
Operating Margin (TTM)	30.69%	38.94%
Gross Margin (TTM)	45.52%	57.07%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 18.62% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Fortis (FTS) at 5.75% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for WTRG.

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Fortis (FTS) at 4.94% and Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 1.38% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
Revenue Growth (YoY)	5.75%	18.62%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	3.29%	2.65%
EPS Growth (YoY)	4.94%	1.38%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.94%	7.52%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Fortis (FTS) at 0.69 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 0.40 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for WTRG.

FTS

Utilities industry group

0.69

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
FTS: 0.69
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

WTRG

Utilities industry group

0.40

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
WTRG: 0.40
Min: 0.29

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Fortis (FTS) at 1.35 and Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 1.23 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

FTS

Utilities industry group

1.35

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
FTS: 1.35
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

WTRG

Utilities industry group

1.23

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
WTRG: 1.23
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.69	0.40
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.35	1.23
Net Debt / EBITDA	6.22	6.30

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Fortis (FTS) at 4.18% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 3.01% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, FTS the richer one.

FTS

Utilities industry group

4.18%

Max: 6.66%
FTS: 4.18%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

WTRG

Utilities industry group

3.01%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
WTRG: 3.01%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Fortis (FTS) at 72.73% and Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 69.42% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

FTS

Utilities industry group

72.73%

Max: 113.04%
FTS: 72.73%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

WTRG

Utilities industry group

69.42%

Max: 113.04%
WTRG: 69.42%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
Dividend Yield (TTM)	4.18%	3.01%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	72.73%	69.42%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 22.73 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Fortis (FTS) at 23.66 sits in the richer quartile — FTS needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

FTS

Utilities industry group

23.66

Max: 31.22
FTS: 23.66
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

WTRG

Utilities industry group

22.73

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
WTRG: 22.73
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Fortis (FTS) at 2.47 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 5.01 sits in the pricier quartile — WTRG costs more per dollar of sales.

FTS

Utilities industry group

2.47

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
FTS: 2.47
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

WTRG

Utilities industry group

5.01

Max: 6.35
WTRG: 5.01
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Fortis (FTS) at 1.79 and Essential Utilities (WTRG) at 1.83 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

FTS

Utilities industry group

1.79

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
FTS: 1.79
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

WTRG

Utilities industry group

1.83

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
WTRG: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

Fortis (FTS) vs. Essential Utilities (WTRG): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Fortis (FTS) and Essential Utilities (WTRG)
Metric	FTS	WTRG
P/E Ratio (TTM)	23.66	22.73
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.47	5.01
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	1.79	1.83
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-9.42%	-5.45%