Aecon Group (TSE:ARE) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Shares of Aecon Group Inc. (TSE:ARE - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as C$22.84 and last traded at C$22.82, with a volume of 49585 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at C$22.71.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on ARE shares. Desjardins dropped their price objective on Aecon Group from C$20.00 to C$18.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. ATB Capital raised their price target on Aecon Group from C$21.00 to C$29.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Aecon Group from C$30.00 to C$31.00 in a report on Friday, October 4th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Aecon Group from C$17.50 to C$16.50 in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, National Bank Financial raised shares of Aecon Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aecon Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of C$21.16.

Aecon Group Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average price is C$19.21 and its 200 day moving average price is C$17.35. The firm has a market cap of C$1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -83.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 32.86, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.27.

Aecon Group (TSE:ARE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The company reported C($1.99) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of C($2.53) by C$0.54. Aecon Group had a net margin of 0.32% and a return on equity of 1.40%. The firm had revenue of C$853.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of C$1.01 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Aecon Group Inc. will post 1.3793321 EPS for the current year.

Aecon Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 2nd were given a dividend of $0.19 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 20th. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. Aecon Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -281.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Senior Officer Timothy John Murphy purchased 4,244 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of C$17.66 per share, for a total transaction of C$74,969.84. In other Aecon Group news, Senior Officer Timothy John Murphy acquired 4,244 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of C$17.66 per share, for a total transaction of C$74,969.84. Also, Director Scott Stewart purchased 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of C$16.54 per share, with a total value of C$165,380.00. Insiders have purchased 16,549 shares of company stock valued at $274,762 in the last 90 days. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Aecon Group Company Profile

Aecon Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provide construction and infrastructure development services to private and public sector clients in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Construction and Concessions. The Construction segment focuses on civil infrastructure, urban transportation solutions, nuclear power infrastructure, utility infrastructure, and conventional industrial infrastructure market sectors.