FirstService (TSE:FSV) Upgraded at Scotiabank

Scotiabank upgraded shares of FirstService (TSE:FSV) (NASDAQ:FSV) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Friday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, TD Securities increased their price objective on shares of FirstService from C$211.00 to C$214.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus price target of C$214.00.

FirstService Stock Performance

FSV opened at C$230.39 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 136.54. The company has a market cap of C$10.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.04, a PEG ratio of 107.75 and a beta of 0.92. FirstService has a 52-week low of C$220.39 and a 52-week high of C$290.34. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is C$268.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is C$254.27.

FirstService Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th were given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.48%.

Insider Transactions at FirstService

In other news, Senior Officer Jeremy Alan Rakusin sold 2,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$273.24, for a total value of C$765,072.00. Also, Director Erin Joy Wallace sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$275.74, for a total transaction of C$827,214.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at C$2,757,380. This trade represents a 23.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 10.26% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About FirstService

FirstService Corp operates in two business divisions: FirstService Residential and FirstService Brands. FirstService Residential has service contracts to manage thousands of residential communities, including high-, medium-, and low-rise condominiums and co-operatives, and generates most of the company’s revenue.