FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 275,800 shares, a growth of 27.2% from the May 31st total of 216,800 shares. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 93,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On FirstService

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. acquired a new stake in FirstService during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in FirstService during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in FirstService during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd grew its holdings in FirstService by 25.9% during the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Security National Bank acquired a new stake in FirstService during the 4th quarter valued at $90,000. 69.35% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on FSV shares. Scotiabank started coverage on shares of FirstService in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $170.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of FirstService from $193.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.60.

FirstService Price Performance

FirstService stock opened at $152.37 on Friday. FirstService has a 1 year low of $134.77 and a 1 year high of $171.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $149.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.36. The company has a market cap of $6.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.43 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 2.00.

FirstService (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.01). FirstService had a net margin of 2.02% and a return on equity of 16.42%. The company had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that FirstService will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current year.

FirstService Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.51%.

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.