Legal & General Group Plc Sells 101,876 Shares of FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV)

Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its holdings in FirstService Co. (NASDAQ:FSV - Free Report) TSE: FSV by 38.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 160,014 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 101,876 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.35% of FirstService worth $28,971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Berry Wealth Group LP increased its holdings in shares of FirstService by 5.4% in 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 in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of FirstService by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,363 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised 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 worth $533,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of FirstService during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in shares of FirstService in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. 69.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on FSV shares. Raymond James upped their price objective 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. StockNews.com cut shares of FirstService from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on FirstService from $217.50 to $210.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $203.33.

FirstService Price Performance

FSV traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $172.03. 97,818 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 108,314. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $170.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $179.81. FirstService Co. has a one year low of $141.26 and a one year high of $197.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.92 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

FirstService Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.275 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. This is a boost from FirstService's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. FirstService's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.04%.

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.