FirstService Corporation (NASDAQ:FSV) Raises Dividend to $0.31 Per Share

FirstService Corporation (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.305 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, April 7th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is a 10.9% increase from FirstService’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28.

FirstService has raised its dividend by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 7 consecutive years. FirstService has a payout ratio of 17.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect FirstService to earn $5.91 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.10 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 18.6%.

FirstService Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:FSV traded up $10.55 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $165.10. The stock had a trading volume of 435,297 shares, compared to its average volume of 211,691. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $174.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. FirstService has a 52 week low of $147.23 and a 52 week high of $209.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.06.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstService

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Durable Capital Partners LP raised its stake in shares of FirstService by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 2,216,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $422,263,000 after buying an additional 253,155 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in FirstService by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,954,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $304,000,000 after purchasing an additional 29,805 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in FirstService by 5.1% in the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,551,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $295,481,000 after purchasing an additional 75,712 shares in the last quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd lifted its stake in FirstService by 0.5% during the second quarter. Orbis Allan Gray Ltd now owns 1,423,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $248,636,000 after purchasing an additional 6,680 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in FirstService by 2.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 600,155 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $114,323,000 after purchasing an additional 13,264 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.35% of the company’s stock.

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.