QV Investors Inc. Sells 18,690 Shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN)

QV Investors Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN - Free Report) TSE: STN by 9.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 187,035 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 18,690 shares during the quarter. Stantec makes up 1.6% of QV Investors Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. QV Investors Inc. owned about 0.16% of Stantec worth $15,501,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Stantec by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 580,736 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $45,559,000 after buying an additional 39,671 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Stantec by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 407,626 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $31,965,000 after purchasing an additional 45,900 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Stantec by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,739 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake 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 valued at $20,699,000 after buying an additional 30,629 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its stake in Stantec by 73.2% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 31,001 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $2,493,000 after buying an additional 13,107 shares during the period. 63.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Stantec Stock Performance

Shares of Stantec stock traded down $0.51 during trading on Thursday, reaching $105.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 79,872 shares, compared to its average volume of 145,210. The business's 50-day moving average price is $91.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.66. The firm has a market cap of $12.00 billion, a PE ratio of 47.80 and a beta of 0.98. Stantec Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.18 and a 52 week high of $106.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Stantec (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The business services provider reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.02. Stantec had a net margin of 4.78% and a return on equity of 16.57%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Stantec Inc. will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.1612 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. This is an increase from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Stantec's payout ratio is presently 25.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on STN. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" 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 report on Friday, May 16th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Stantec from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, TD Securities restated a "buy" rating on shares of Stantec in a report on Friday, May 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy".

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.