Stantec (TSE:STN) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Stantec Inc. (TSE:STN - Get Free Report) NYSE: STN crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of C$119.66 and traded as high as C$145.03. Stantec shares last traded at C$144.52, with a volume of 273,159 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Desjardins upped their price objective on shares of Stantec from C$148.00 to C$153.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. ATB Capital upped their price objective on shares of Stantec from C$140.00 to C$145.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Stantec from C$138.00 to C$150.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. CIBC increased their price target on shares of Stantec from C$141.00 to C$156.00 in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, TD Securities raised their target price on shares of Stantec from C$145.00 to C$165.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Stantec presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of C$148.42.

Stantec Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 85.29. The business's 50-day simple moving average is C$128.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$120.02. The firm has a market capitalization of C$16.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.99, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.82.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 15th were paid a $0.225 dividend. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. This is an increase from Stantec's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 28th. Stantec's payout ratio is presently 28.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Clayton Bock purchased 1,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average price of C$139.51 per share, for a total transaction of C$174,392.88. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.