Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) Shares Bought by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Stantec Inc. by 17.2% during the 1st quarter, acquiring an additional 3,029 shares, which brought its total shares to 20,686, valued at approximately $1,714,000.
• Stantec declared a quarterly dividend of $0.1612 per share, which is an increase from its previous dividend of $0.16, reflecting a 0.6% yield.
• The company's latest quarterly earnings report showed an earnings per share of $0.81, exceeding the consensus estimate, with revenues of $1.08 billion compared to the estimated $1.54 billion.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN - Free Report) TSE: STN by 17.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,686 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,029 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Stantec were worth $1,714,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mariner LLC boosted its stake in Stantec by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 4,880 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $383,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Stantec by 37.6% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 874 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in Stantec by 632.8% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 491 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the period. ELCO Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in Stantec by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC now owns 7,337 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $608,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis raised its position in Stantec by 114.8% during the 4th quarter. Natixis now owns 1,781 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 952 shares during the last quarter. 63.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

STN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, May 16th. TD Securities restated a "buy" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stantec from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, CIBC reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a report on Friday, July 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Stantec has a consensus rating of "Buy".

Stantec Price Performance

NYSE:STN traded up $1.57 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $111.58. 99,152 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 168,756. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $108.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $92.90. Stantec Inc. has a 1 year low of $73.18 and a 1 year high of $113.50. The company has a market cap of $12.73 billion, a PE ratio of 46.10 and a beta of 1.03.

Stantec (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The business services provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.02. Stantec had a net margin of 5.01% and a return on equity of 18.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Stantec Inc. will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.1612 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is an increase from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Stantec's dividend payout ratio is 27.27%.

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.