Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) Given Consensus Rating of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) (TSE:STN) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the six analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on STN shares. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Stantec in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Stantec in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Stantec from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stantec from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, TD Securities restated a “buy” rating on shares of Stantec in a research note on Friday, May 16th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stantec

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Stantec by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 580,736 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $45,559,000 after buying an additional 39,671 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Stantec by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 407,626 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $31,965,000 after purchasing an additional 45,900 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in Stantec by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,739 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Stantec by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 263,845 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $20,699,000 after purchasing an additional 30,629 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Stantec by 114.3% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 23,679 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,858,000 after purchasing an additional 12,627 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.86% of the company’s stock.

Stantec Stock Performance

STN opened at $106.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $12.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.47 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50 day moving average is $95.12 and its 200 day moving average is $85.70. Stantec has a 12-month low of $73.18 and a 12-month high of $108.34.

Stantec (NYSE:STN) (TSE:STN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The business services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. Stantec had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 16.57%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Stantec will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.1612 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. This is a boost from Stantec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Stantec’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.86%.

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.