Stantec (STN) Competitors

Stantec (NYSE:STN) and Waste Connections (NYSE:WCN) are both large-cap business services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability, media sentiment, institutional ownership and dividends.

Which has more volatility & risk, STN or WCN?

Stantec has a beta of 1.03, suggesting that its share price is 3% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Waste Connections has a beta of 0.58, suggesting that its share price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is STN or WCN a better dividend stock?

Stantec pays an annual dividend of $0.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Waste Connections pays an annual dividend of $1.26 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Stantec pays out 24.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Waste Connections pays out 50.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Stantec has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years and Waste Connections has raised its dividend for 8 consecutive years.

Is STN or WCN more profitable?

Waste Connections has a net margin of 6.97% compared to Stantec's net margin of 5.62%. Stantec's return on equity of 19.03% beat Waste Connections' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Stantec	5.62%	19.03%	8.04%
Waste Connections	6.97%	15.72%	6.32%

Do analysts rate STN or WCN?

Waste Connections has a consensus price target of $215.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.50%. Given Waste Connections' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Waste Connections is more favorable than Stantec.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Stantec	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Waste Connections	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	11 Buy rating(s)	5 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.11

Which has higher earnings and valuation, STN or WCN?

Waste Connections has higher revenue and earnings than Stantec. Stantec is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Waste Connections, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Stantec	$5.47B	2.24	$263.82M	$2.74	39.20
Waste Connections	$8.92B	5.39	$617.57M	$2.48	75.06

Does the media prefer STN or WCN?

In the previous week, Stantec had 26 more articles in the media than Waste Connections. MarketBeat recorded 52 mentions for Stantec and 26 mentions for Waste Connections. Stantec's average media sentiment score of 0.75 beat Waste Connections' score of 0.53 indicating that Stantec is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Stantec	20 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	10 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Waste Connections	12 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	2 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do insiders & institutionals believe in STN or WCN?

63.9% of Stantec shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 86.1% of Waste Connections shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of Stantec shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Waste Connections shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Waste Connections beats Stantec on 11 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.