Stantec (NYSE:STN) Downgraded to "Buy" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Stantec's stock rating was downgraded from a "strong-buy" to a "buy" by Wall Street Zen, despite several other analysts maintaining an "outperform" rating.
• Stantec reported $0.98 earnings per share for the latest quarter, meeting analyst expectations, but its revenue of $1.17 billion fell short of the estimated $1.64 billion.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.86% of Stantec's stock, with significant increases in stakes reported by several investment firms during the second quarter.

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Stantec (NYSE:STN - Free Report) TSE: STN from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday.

STN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. CIBC reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, July 18th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Stantec in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a report on Friday, May 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Stantec presently has a consensus rating of "Buy".

Stantec Stock Performance

STN traded down $1.2920 on Friday, reaching $106.1080. 233,558 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 213,001. The company's 50-day moving average price is $108.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.13. Stantec has a fifty-two week low of $73.18 and a fifty-two week high of $113.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.10 billion, a PE ratio of 38.73 and a beta of 1.03.

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 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98. Stantec had a return on equity of 19.03% and a net margin of 5.62%.The company had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. Stantec has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.784-3.880 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Stantec will post 3.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stantec Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stantec

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of STN. 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 worth $1,751,093,000 after purchasing an additional 13,958,790 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in Stantec by 82.4% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,449,311 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $374,871,000 after purchasing an additional 1,558,703 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Stantec in the 2nd quarter worth about $157,932,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings 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 worth $359,131,000 after purchasing an additional 964,188 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new position in Stantec in the 4th quarter worth about $56,191,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 63.86% of the company's stock.

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.