Stantec (TSE:STN) Hits New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Stantec Inc. (TSE:STN - Get Free Report) NYSE: STN hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as C$144.38 and last traded at C$144.26, with a volume of 88289 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$142.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on STN shares. ATB Capital raised their price objective on Stantec from C$140.00 to C$145.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. TD Securities lifted their price target on Stantec from C$145.00 to C$165.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Stantec from C$138.00 to C$150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Stantec from C$143.00 to C$156.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, National Bankshares lifted their price target on Stantec from C$144.00 to C$147.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Stantec currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of C$148.42.

Stantec Stock Down 0.8%

The stock's 50-day moving average price is C$125.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is C$119.06. The stock has a market capitalization of C$16.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 85.29.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were issued a dividend of $0.225 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 28th. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. This is a positive change from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Stantec's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stantec news, Director Clayton Bock purchased 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of C$139.51 per share, with a total value of C$174,392.88. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Stantec Company Profile

Stantec Inc is a sustainable engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting company. The company is geographically diversified in three regional operating units namely Canada, the United States and Global, offering similar services across all regions. The company offers services in various sectors across the project life cycle through five business operating units infrastructure, water, buildings, environmental services, and energy and resources.