The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that Canadian utilities present great buying opportunities when valuations are low and dividend yields are high. The Globe's David Berman writes that since July, Fortis has surged about 9 per cent, reaching a record high. The stock has outperformed the S&P 500 and the S&P/TSX Composite Index, both of which have risen less than 4 per cent during the same period. Other large Canadian utilities are also on the rise. Emera gained 8.6 per cent from early July to peak on Aug. 8, while Hydro One has rebounded nearly 6 per cent since mid-July, nearing new highs after a dip that began in May. Raymond James analyst Theo Genzebu says Hydro One's "positive attributes are reflected in the company's share price." In other words, Mr. Berman says investors should temper their expectations for additional gains this year. Similarly, CIBC analyst Mark Jarvi cut Emera from "outperformer" to "neutral" last week. He says he is not negative on the name. However, he suspects the stock's strong gains and rising valuation this year stand as a hurdle to further gains. Until a year ago investors could scoop up many utilities at beaten-up share prices and relatively low valuations.