American Century Companies Inc. Boosts Holdings in FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV)

American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV) (TSE:FSV) by 36.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 543,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 144,234 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 1.20% of FirstService worth $98,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FSV. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in FirstService during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Trust Co. of Vermont purchased a new position in FirstService during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of FirstService during the 3rd quarter valued at about $53,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in FirstService by 158.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 728 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 446 shares during the period. Finally, Gitterman Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in FirstService in the 4th quarter valued at $201,000. 69.35% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of FirstService from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of FirstService from $215.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.67.

FirstService Price Performance

FSV opened at $173.61 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $7.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.45 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $175.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $181.66. FirstService Co. has a 12-month low of $141.26 and a 12-month high of $197.84.

FirstService Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.275 dividend. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from FirstService’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. FirstService’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.04%.

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.