Empowered Funds LLC Increases Position in FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV)

Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV - Free Report) TSE: FSV by 31.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,769 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 3,037 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in FirstService were worth $2,311,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Berry Wealth Group LP boosted its position in shares of FirstService by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Berry Wealth Group LP now owns 1,786 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of FirstService by 3.5% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,932 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its position in shares of FirstService by 3.2% during the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,523 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $643,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of FirstService during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in shares of FirstService during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.35% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of FirstService from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of FirstService from $200.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of FirstService from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.67.

FirstService Stock Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ:FSV traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $174.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 49,774 shares, compared to its average volume of 127,002. The company has a market capitalization of $7.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.55 and a beta of 1.06. FirstService Co. has a 12 month low of $141.26 and a 12 month high of $197.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $181.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $182.08.

FirstService Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.275 dividend. This is a positive change from FirstService's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. FirstService's payout ratio is currently 33.67%.

FirstService 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.