Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company.

Several analysts have weighed in on STN shares. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Stantec in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They issued a "sector outperform" rating for the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded shares of Stantec from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Stantec from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Stantec from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, November 16th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stantec

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new stake in Stantec in the second quarter valued at about $71,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Stantec by 802.8% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 975 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 867 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Stantec by 12.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,166 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in shares of Stantec by 30.3% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,122 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $171,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Stantec during the third quarter worth $211,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.86% of the company's stock.

Stantec Stock Performance

STN stock traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $81.26. 106,301 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 90,071. Stantec has a one year low of $74.98 and a one year high of $88.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.93 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $81.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $82.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.42.

Stantec (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The business services provider reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. Stantec had a return on equity of 16.57% and a net margin of 4.78%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Stantec will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.155 per share. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This is an increase from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. Stantec's dividend payout ratio is 26.36%.

About Stantec

Stantec Inc provides professional services in the areas of infrastructure and facilities to the public and private sectors in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It offers evaluation, planning, and designing infrastructure solutions; solutions for sustainable water resources, planning, management, and infrastructure; environmental services; integrated architecture, engineering, interior design, and planning solutions for buildings; and energy and resources solutions.