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

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

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank lifted their target price on FirstService from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on FirstService from $187.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. TD Securities increased 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. StockNews.com raised shares of FirstService from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of FirstService from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st.

FirstService Trading Up 1.3 %

FirstService stock opened at $188.44 on Thursday. FirstService has a 52-week low of $141.26 and a 52-week high of $192.71. The company has a market cap of $8.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.52 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $184.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $169.06.

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.32 billion. FirstService had a net margin of 2.19% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 25.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.18 earnings per share. Analysts predict that FirstService will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

FirstService Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstService

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FSV. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in FirstService by 35.0% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of FirstService by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,932 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $533,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of FirstService by 20.5% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 634 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its position in FirstService by 3.2% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $643,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. 69.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.