National Bank Financial Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Aecon Group (TSE:ARE) Stock

Key Points

• National Bank Financial raised Aecon Group’s price target from C$66 to C$70 while maintaining an “outperform” rating, implying 34.62% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive: Aecon has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of C$60, with seven Buy ratings and five Holds.
• Aecon shares rose 5.6% to C$52 during Monday trading. The company reported C$0.86 in quarterly EPS on C$1.92 billion in revenue, but continued to post a negative net margin and return on equity.

Aecon Group (TSE:ARE - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by stock analysts at National Bank Financial from C$66.00 to C$70.00 in a research report issued on Monday, BayStreet reports. The brokerage currently has an "outperform" rating on the stock. National Bank Financial's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 34.62% from the company's previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on shares of Aecon Group from C$60.00 to C$65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. Desjardins raised their price target on Aecon Group from C$55.00 to C$61.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Aecon Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of C$60.00.

Aecon Group Stock Up 5.6%

TSE:ARE traded up C$2.77 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting C$52.00. The stock had a trading volume of 450,212 shares, compared to its average volume of 468,965. Aecon Group has a twelve month low of C$25.05 and a twelve month high of C$59.96. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of C$49.31 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$45.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 56.97. The company has a market capitalization of C$3.57 billion, a PE ratio of -67.53, a PEG ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 1.16.

Aecon Group (TSE:ARE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported C$0.86 EPS for the quarter. Aecon Group had a negative net margin of 0.83% and a negative return on equity of 5.32%. The company had revenue of C$1.92 billion for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Aecon Group will post 1.38 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Steven Neil Nackan sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$45.55, for a total value of C$204,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 8,035 shares in the company, valued at C$365,994.25. This trade represents a 35.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, Director Scott Stewart acquired 4,455 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 28th. The shares were bought at an average cost of C$44.89 per share, for a total transaction of C$199,984.95. Following the acquisition, the director owned 24,484 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$1,099,086.76. This represents a 22.24% increase in their position. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,500 shares of company stock worth $343,875. Corporate insiders own 0.82% of the company's stock.

About Aecon Group

Aecon Group Inc TSX: ARE is a North American construction and infrastructure development company with global experience. Aecon delivers integrated solutions to private and public-sector clients through its Construction segment in the Civil, Urban Transportation, Nuclear, Utility and Industrial sectors, and provides project development, financing, investment, management, and operations and maintenance services through its Concessions segment.

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