FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Separately, Raymond James increased their price objective on FirstService from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.67.

FirstService Price Performance

FSV opened at $168.91 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.79. FirstService has a 1 year low of $141.26 and a 1 year high of $197.84. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $175.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $181.46. The firm has a market cap of $7.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.87 and a beta of 1.12.

FirstService Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.275 per share. This is an increase from FirstService’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio is 37.04%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of FirstService during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in FirstService during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in FirstService during the third quarter valued at $53,000. Natixis boosted its holdings in FirstService by 5,511.1% in the fourth quarter. Natixis now owns 505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of FirstService in the fourth quarter worth $101,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.35% of the company’s stock.

About FirstService

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.