Stifel Nicolaus Boosts FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) Price Target to $215.00

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) had its price objective upped by Stifel Nicolaus from $200.00 to $215.00 in a research report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Stifel Nicolaus currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on FSV. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of FirstService from $187.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on FirstService from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, TD Securities increased their target price on FirstService from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, FirstService has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.33.

FirstService Stock Performance

NASDAQ:FSV opened at $184.54 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.30 billion, a PE ratio of 91.36 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $180.19 and its 200 day moving average is $164.08. FirstService has a fifty-two week low of $134.77 and a fifty-two week high of $189.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 1.84.

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.10. FirstService had a net margin of 1.73% and a return on equity of 15.60%. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that FirstService will post 4.35 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstService Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 7th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. FirstService’s payout ratio is currently 49.50%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of FirstService by 8,066.7% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its holdings in FirstService by 35.0% during the second quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lifted its holdings in FirstService by 25.9% during the first quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its position in FirstService by 49.6% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of FirstService by 40.6% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. 69.35% of the stock is currently 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.