FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

FSV has been the topic of several other reports. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upped their price target on FirstService from $170.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of FirstService in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Scotia lifted their price target on shares of FirstService from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. TD upped their price objective on FirstService from $195.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $179.00 price objective on shares of FirstService in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, FirstService presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.82.

FirstService Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ:FSV opened at $157.05 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $136.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $142.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.58 billion, a PE ratio of 47.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.89. FirstService has a 12 month low of $119.41 and a 12 month high of $166.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.05. FirstService had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 2.59%. The company had revenue of $1.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that FirstService will post 5.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

FirstService Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th were paid a $0.3050 dividend. This represents a $1.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 30th. FirstService’s payout ratio is presently 37.20%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On FirstService

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in FirstService by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 553,941 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $70,838,000 after purchasing an additional 87,513 shares during the last quarter. BCV Asset Management Inc. grew its position in FirstService by 33.7% in the 3rd quarter. BCV Asset Management Inc. now owns 677,078 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $87,268,000 after purchasing an additional 170,544 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp grew its position in FirstService by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 48,396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,189,000 after purchasing an additional 6,571 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of FirstService in the third quarter valued at approximately $290,000. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of FirstService by 27.1% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 2,286 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. 69.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

FirstService Company Profile

FirstService Corporation is a North American property services company operating through two primary businesses: FirstService Residential and FirstService Brands. The company serves residential communities and property owners in the United States and Canada.

FirstService Residential provides property management services to condominium and homeowner associations, as well as other residential communities. Its services include day-to-day community operations, maintenance coordination, financial administration and support for boards and residents.

FirstService Brands delivers services to homes and businesses through a network of company-owned operations and franchises.