Plato Investment Management Ltd Purchases Shares of 6,781 Stantec Inc. $STN

Key Points

• Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired 6,781 shares of Stantec Inc. in the first quarter, valued at approximately $568,000, indicating increasing institutional interest in the company.
• Stantec has raised its quarterly dividend to $0.1635, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders, with an annualized yield of 0.6%.
• The stock currently holds an average rating of "Buy" from seven analysts, with recent reports suggesting strong performance expectations for Stantec in the near future.

Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new stake in Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN - Free Report) TSE: STN in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,781 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $568,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in Stantec by 166.5% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 22,342,818 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,751,093,000 after buying an additional 13,958,790 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Stantec by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 4,309,182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $359,131,000 after acquiring an additional 964,188 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Stantec by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 3,008,962 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $236,055,000 after acquiring an additional 261,705 shares during the last quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Stantec by 781.2% during the first quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 186,118 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $15,429,000 after purchasing an additional 164,998 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Stantec by 68.6% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 301,833 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $23,672,000 after purchasing an additional 122,814 shares during the period. 63.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STN has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Stantec from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 16th. CIBC reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Stantec has an average rating of "Buy".

Stantec Trading Down 1.5%

STN stock traded down $1.67 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $110.59. The stock had a trading volume of 101,113 shares, compared to its average volume of 150,555. The firm has a market cap of $12.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.36 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Stantec Inc. has a 1-year low of $73.18 and a 1-year high of $113.50. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $109.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.03.

Stantec (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The business services provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98. The firm had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Stantec had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 5.62%. Stantec has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.784-3.880 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Stantec Inc. will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 29th will be paid a $0.1635 dividend. This represents a $0.65 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 29th. Stantec's payout ratio is presently 24.09%.

Stantec 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.