Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) (TSE:STN) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company.

STN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Scotiabank started coverage on Stantec in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They set a “sector outperform” rating for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in STN. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Stantec by 121.3% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,802,689 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $225,537,000 after purchasing an additional 1,536,475 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in shares of Stantec by 54.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,453,730 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $116,897,000 after buying an additional 513,269 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its position in shares of Stantec by 86.0% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 913,713 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $75,897,000 after buying an additional 422,538 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of Stantec by 15.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,176,820 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $265,177,000 after acquiring an additional 415,993 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its position in Stantec by 198.4% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 378,119 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $30,405,000 after acquiring an additional 251,407 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.86% of the company’s stock.

Stantec Stock Performance

NYSE:STN opened at $78.54 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.42. Stantec has a fifty-two week low of $76.03 and a fifty-two week high of $88.42. The firm has a market cap of $8.96 billion, a PE ratio of 35.70 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $82.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.75.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This is an increase from Stantec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. Stantec’s dividend payout ratio 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.