Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 44,833 Shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN)

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its position in shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) (TSE:STN) by 50.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,394 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 44,833 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Stantec were worth $3,834,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stifel Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Stantec by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 4,245 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Stantec by 12.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,166 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Stantec by 5.1% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Stantec by 30.3% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,122 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Stantec by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 11,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $894,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.86% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on STN shares. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 16th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Stantec Price Performance

Shares of Stantec stock opened at $79.58 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.91. Stantec Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.03 and a 12-month high of $88.42. The firm has a market cap of $9.08 billion, a PE ratio of 36.17 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.155 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This is a boost from Stantec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. Stantec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.18%.

Stantec Company Profile

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.