Stantec (NYSE:STN) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN - Get Free Report) TSE: STN reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $103.32 and last traded at $101.76, with a volume of 340542 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $101.48.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Stantec Trading Up 1.2%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The company has a market cap of $11.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.34 and a beta of 0.98.

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

Stantec Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.1612 per share. This is a boost from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Stantec's dividend payout ratio is 25.62%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position 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 valued at $1,751,093,000 after buying an additional 13,958,790 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Stantec by 1.1% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,624,935 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $383,352,000 after acquiring an additional 49,857 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Stantec by 28.8% in the first 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. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Stantec by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,496,408 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $273,970,000 after purchasing an additional 302,979 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Stantec by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 3,344,994 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $262,791,000 after purchasing an additional 542,305 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 63.86% of the company's stock.

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.