Aecon Group (TSE:ARE) Sets New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Aecon Group Inc. (TSE:ARE) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Raymond James raised their price target on the stock from C$24.00 to C$28.00. The stock traded as high as C$28.86 and last traded at C$28.72, with a volume of 6889 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$28.60.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Aecon Group from C$16.50 to C$27.00 in a research report on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Aecon Group from C$28.00 to C$33.00 in a research report on Monday. Stifel Canada upgraded shares of Aecon Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Aecon Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from C$23.00 to C$35.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, ATB Capital increased their price target on shares of Aecon Group from C$21.00 to C$29.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of C$25.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Senior Officer Timothy John Murphy purchased 4,244 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of C$17.66 per share, for a total transaction of C$74,969.84. 0.82% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Aecon Group Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 32.86. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is C$21.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$18.03. The company has a market capitalization of C$1.75 billion, a PE ratio of -105.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 18.18 and a beta of 1.13.

Aecon Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 20th. Aecon Group’s payout ratio is -281.48%.

Aecon Group Company Profile

Aecon Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provide construction and infrastructure development services to private and public sector clients in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Construction and Concessions. The Construction segment focuses on civil infrastructure, urban transportation solutions, nuclear power infrastructure, utility infrastructure, and conventional industrial infrastructure market sectors.