FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. TD Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $217.00 price target on shares of FirstService in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of FirstService in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $202.00 target price on shares of FirstService in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $211.67.

FirstService Stock Down 0.7%

FSV opened at $148.81 on Friday. FirstService has a fifty-two week low of $146.29 and a fifty-two week high of $209.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.09, a PEG ratio of 3.99 and a beta of 1.05. The company’s 50-day moving average is $156.86 and its 200 day moving average is $168.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.73.

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.05. FirstService had a net margin of 2.64% and a return on equity of 18.69%. The firm had revenue of $1.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.34 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that FirstService will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstService Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.305 dividend. This is a boost from FirstService’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. FirstService’s payout ratio is presently 34.81%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstService

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of FirstService in the third quarter valued at $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in shares of FirstService by 88.0% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of FirstService during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in FirstService by 63.7% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in FirstService in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. 69.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About FirstService

FirstService Corporation, founded in 1989 and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, is a leading provider of property services in North America. The company operates through two principal segments—FirstService Residential and FirstService Brands—offering a broad range of services to residential, commercial and homeowner association clients.

FirstService Residential delivers community management, financial oversight and consulting services to thousands of residential communities across the United States and Canada.