FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $198.33.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on FSV shares. TD Securities raised their target price on shares of FirstService from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on FirstService from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com upgraded FirstService from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on FirstService from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in FirstService in the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in shares of FirstService by 35.0% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of FirstService in the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in shares of FirstService by 49.6% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Finally, Hardy Reed LLC acquired a new position in shares of FirstService during the third quarter valued at approximately $217,000. 69.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

FirstService Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FSV opened at $178.88 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $187.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $177.49. FirstService has a twelve month low of $141.26 and a twelve month high of $197.84. The company has a market capitalization of $8.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.53 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.21. FirstService had a net margin of 2.19% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The company had revenue of $1.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.32 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.18 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that FirstService will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstService Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.67%.

FirstService Company Profile

FirstService Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides residential property management and other essential property services to residential and commercial customers in the United States and Canada. It operates through two segments: FirstService Residential and FirstService Brands. The FirstService Residential segment offers services for private residential communities, such as condominiums, co-operatives, homeowner associations, master-planned communities, active adult and lifestyle communities, and various other residential developments.