FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) Shares Down 4.9% – Time to Sell?

FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) shares were down 4.9% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $173.95 and last traded at $172.80. Approximately 54,261 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 117,762 shares. The stock had previously closed at $181.65.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on FirstService from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of FirstService from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of FirstService from $190.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of FirstService from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, TD Securities raised their price objective on FirstService from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.67.

FirstService Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $184.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $181.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 72.25 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

FirstService Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This is an increase from FirstService’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio is 41.67%.

Institutional Trading of FirstService

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in FirstService by 1.6% during the third quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,449,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $264,555,000 after purchasing an additional 23,082 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of FirstService by 486.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 469,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $87,308,000 after acquiring an additional 389,129 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in FirstService by 57.4% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 457,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $83,138,000 after acquiring an additional 166,996 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in FirstService by 19.7% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 388,430 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,992,000 after acquiring an additional 63,807 shares during the period. Finally, Fiera Capital Corp lifted its holdings in FirstService by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 258,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,839,000 after purchasing an additional 50,265 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.35% of the company’s stock.

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.