Intact Investment Management Inc. Buys 164,998 Shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN)

Intact Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN - Free Report) TSE: STN by 781.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 186,118 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 164,998 shares during the quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.16% of Stantec worth $15,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Stantec by 25.5% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 349,580 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $27,413,000 after buying an additional 71,100 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its position in shares of Stantec by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 981,515 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $76,968,000 after acquiring an additional 48,972 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in Stantec in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,635,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Stantec by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 146,866 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $11,522,000 after acquiring an additional 8,244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its stake in Stantec by 11.2% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,359 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.86% of the company's stock.

Stantec Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE STN traded up $0.35 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $106.98. The company had a trading volume of 165,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,600. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $98.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.21 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. Stantec Inc. has a 12 month low of $73.18 and a 12 month high of $108.82.

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

Stantec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.1612 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 currently 25.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on STN shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Stantec from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, May 16th. TD Securities reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Stantec in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Stantec from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Scotiabank reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy".

About Stantec

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.