Stantec (NYSE:STN) Raised to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Stantec from "hold" to "strong-buy," while other firms have moved ratings (Wall Street Zen also to strong-buy and RBC raising its price target to $175), leaving MarketBeat's consensus as an average "Buy" with a $175 target.
• Stantec beat on EPS ($0.90 vs. $0.87) but missed on revenue ($1.19B vs. ~$1.65B expected), and set FY2026 guidance of $4.37–$4.49 EPS compared with analysts' average near $3.05 for the current fiscal year.
• Institutional investors have been adding shares—AllianceBernstein grew its stake by 82.4% to 3.45M shares, Norges Bank and others built large positions, and institutions now own about 63.9% of the stock.

Stantec (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN was upgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

STN has been the topic of several other reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Stantec from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Stantec in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Stantec from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Stantec from $168.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Stantec has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $175.00.

Stantec Price Performance

STN stock opened at $90.94 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Stantec has a 12 month low of $84.08 and a 12 month high of $114.51. The firm has a market cap of $10.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.11 and a beta of 1.12. The company's 50-day moving average price is $90.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.79.

Stantec (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The business services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.03. Stantec had a net margin of 5.90% and a return on equity of 17.56%. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.65 billion. Stantec has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.370-4.490 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Stantec will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stantec

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in STN. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Stantec by 82.4% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,449,311 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $374,871,000 after purchasing an additional 1,558,703 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Stantec during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $124,217,000. BCV Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Stantec during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $93,015,000. Bank of Montreal Can grew its holdings in Stantec by 25.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,464,733 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $421,321,000 after acquiring an additional 897,912 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc grew its holdings in Stantec by 103.5% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,579,537 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $149,247,000 after acquiring an additional 803,322 shares during the last quarter. 63.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Stantec Company Profile

Stantec is a global design and consulting firm offering professional services in engineering, architecture, and environmental sciences. The company partners with public and private clients to deliver solutions spanning infrastructure, water, energy and resources, and community development. Through an integrated approach, Stantec manages projects from initial planning and conceptual design through construction and commissioning, focusing on sustainability and innovation.

The firm's service portfolio includes civil infrastructure design, building systems engineering, environmental assessments, and project management.

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