Short Interest in Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) Decreases By 21.4%

Stantec Inc. (NYSE:STN) (TSE:STN) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 825,400 shares, a drop of 21.4% from the November 15th total of 1,050,000 shares. Approximately 0.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 150,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.5 days.

Stantec Price Performance

Shares of STN traded down $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $82.61. 86,255 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 121,226. Stantec has a 12 month low of $74.62 and a 12 month high of $88.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a PE ratio of 37.55 and a beta of 0.99. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.92.

Stantec Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.155 per share. This is an increase from Stantec’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. Stantec’s payout ratio is currently 28.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stantec

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of STN. Cidel Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Stantec by 2.9% in the second quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 215,302 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $18,021,000 after purchasing an additional 6,086 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. raised its holdings in Stantec by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 3,298 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Stantec by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Calamos Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,979 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,421,000 after buying an additional 2,468 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Stantec by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 363,803 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $30,450,000 after purchasing an additional 7,473 shares during the period. Finally, Tobam increased its position in Stantec by 43.4% during the second quarter. Tobam now owns 2,642 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 799 shares during the last quarter. 63.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on STN. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Scotiabank assumed coverage on Stantec in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group upgraded Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Stantec from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Stantec

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.