2024 Annual Report
FirstService.com
Creating value one
step at a time
A Message From Our CEO
2024 was another exceptional year
of accomplishment at FirstService
Corporation, marked by robust top-line
growth, margin expansion and strategic
acquisitions.
We have consistently stated that
our long-term goal is to grow our
revenues at an average annual rate of
at least 10% with incremental growth
in EBITDA. We have exceeded this goal
over the last 30 years and believe we
will continue to achieve or exceed it for
the foreseeable future. In 2024 we
were pleased and proud to double our
goal with consolidated revenue growth
of 20% and EBITDA growth of 24%.
This strong financial performance was
the result of a number of drivers that
I highlight below:
Successful First Year in Roofing
In December 2023, we established our newest growth platform
with the acquisition of Roofing Corp of America (RCA), one of the
largest commercial roofing enterprises in North America with 16
branch locations across 11 U.S. states. Roofing shares the same
attractive characteristics as our other property service lines in
terms of being a huge, highly fragmented industry with significant
growth potential. 2024 represented our first full year in partnership
with the RCA team and we accomplished much of what we set
out to do in Year One. Importantly, we hit our internal financial
forecasts, and we also added two key strategic tuck-unders in the
important Florida market. The acquisitions of Crowther Roofing
and Hamilton Roofing midway through the year were important
additions that set us up for a strong 2025 at RCA.
Restoration Organic Growth
Our restoration brands – Paul Davis and First Onsite – finished
the year with momentum and together generated organic growth
of 5% during 2024. If we adjust for more significant “area wide
events” or “named storms”, our restoration segment showed
organic growth of over 10%. We booked half the storm revenue
in 2024 compared to 2023. The organic growth reflects the
progress our restoration brands are making in signing new
National Accounts, gaining wallet share of existing accounts and
driving local branch-level day-to-day business. Our two restoration
brands together have averaged organic growth of 10% over the last
five years. We believe we are right on track with our original vision
for this business since making the bold move into commercial
restoration with the acquisition of First Onsite in 2019. We remain
excited and committed to advancing our long-term strategic plan
in restoration.
Margin Expansion
We are particularly pleased with our consolidated EBITDA margin
for 2024 which ticked up 20 basis points in a tough environment.
It is a credit to our teams at every brand that continued to create
efficiencies and battle as best they could to offset cost inflation
with matching price increases. I want to especially acknowledge
our teams at FirstService Residential for maintaining a consistent
operating margin year-to-year in the face of numerous headwinds,
and California Closets for digging in and driving significant
productivity improvements across our 21 owned operations. We
have a strong culture of “continuous improvement” that leads to
the consistent realization of cost efficiencies across our operations
without sacrificing customer experience. We expect consolidated
margins to expand further in 2025 and to increase annually on
average going forward.
Capital Allocation
In addition to our roofing acquisitions, we were able to complete
six other strategic tuck-under acquisitions as we continue to build
out our geographic footprint and service lines at FirstService
Residential, Century Fire, First Onsite and Paul Davis. We deployed
a total of $212 million of capital in a highly competitive environment
while staying disciplined on valuation. Our proven partnership
model and entrepreneurial spirit continue to resonate with sellers.
Beyond acquisitions, we continued our dividend growth trend
with another 10% increase – the tenth consecutive year we have
hiked our dividend at least 10%. Our businesses generate strong
and consistent cash flows enabling us to allocate capital to drive
growth and deliver dividend returns while keeping our debt levels
at conservative ratios. At 2024 year-end, our leverage sat at 2.0x
net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA, down from the prior year-end
notwithstanding the significant capital deployment. We enter 2025
with significant liquidity through cash on hand and undrawn bank
lines and we expect another strong year of acquisition activity.
Our proven business
model and strategy has
generated consistent
revenue growth and
shareholder returns
for more than three
decades.
People/Culture
It is not possible to drive the consistent year-over-year growth we
have achieved without extraordinary teams that believe in our brands,
live our values and focus on customer experience every day. We
recognize the importance of every team member and prioritize their
growth and development. In 2024 we again saw improvement in
employee engagement and retention metrics. FirstService Residential,
our largest employer brand with two-thirds of our associates,
consistently achieves Great Place to Work® certification in the U.S
and Canada and in 2024 for the first time was recognized as one of
Fortune’s Best Workplaces for Women™. These recognitions speak
volumes about how associates perceive the culture at FirstService.
We are very proud of our unique culture at FirstService and our
mission to #FirstServeOthers remains at the heart of it. Across the
organization, our teams seek ways to give back to their communities
and support each other. One of the key pillars of our Social Purpose
initiative is the FirstService Relief Fund which, since 2018, has
awarded 2,575 grants in excess of $1.8M to team members facing
personal financial hardship. This program has been especially
impactful during the recent, unusually active hurricane season,
offering critical support to those affected. We are proud to offer
this meaningful program to our team members.
Look Forward
Our proven business model and strategy has generated consistent
revenue growth and shareholder returns for more than three decades.
We operate in huge, highly fragmented property service markets with
significant running room for growth – both organically and through
tuck-under acquisition. Our strong performance in 2024 again
demonstrated our ability to capitalize on the opportunity before us.
We remain committed and confident in our ability to continue to
drive average annual growth of at least 10% in revenues and
EBITDA. Our evolving focus on property restoration, repair and
maintenance within our FirstService Brands division adds to our
excitement for the future. Our restoration, roofing, painting, fire
safety and floor covering brands will all benefit from tailwinds
due to the increased frequency of weather events, the aging-built
environment and legislated increases to property repair and
maintenance across North America, particularly in coastal areas.
In closing, I want to thank our operating partners and teams for
their efforts and contribution to our success in 2024. I also
express appreciation to our Board and long-time shareholders
for their continued support.
D. Scott Patterson
Chief Executive Officer
Financial Highlights
Revenues
(US$ millions)
$2,407
$2,772
$3,249
2019
2020
2021
2022
$3,746 $4,335
2023
$5,217
2024
20%17%
Growth
2023 - 2024
CAGR
2019 - 2024
7%
Annual Organic
Revenue Growth1
Annual Average
Organic Growth
2019 - 2024
7%
4%
10%
2019
2020
2021
2022
9%
10%
2023
4%
2024
(1) 2020 Organic Growth negatively impacted by COVID-related closures across several FirstService business lines.
Adjusted EPS1
(US$)
7% 11%
Growth
2023 - 2024
CAGR
2019 - 2024
$3.00
$3.46
$4.572
2019
2020
2021
2022
$4.24
$4.66
$5.00
2023
2024
83%
Annual Dividends
(US$)
Cumulative
Dividend Growth
since 2019
$0.60
$0.66
$0.73
2019
2020
2021
2022
$0.81
$0.90
2023
$1.00
$1.10
2024
2025
24% 17%
Growth
2023 - 2024
CAGR
2019 - 2024
Adjusted EBITDA1
(US$ millions)
$235
$284
$327
2019
2020
2021
2022
$352
$416
2023
$514
2024
(1) Adjusted EBIDTA and Adjusted EPS, as presented above, are non-GAAP measures. Investors should consider non-GAAP measures in addition to, not as a substitute for, the comparable GAAP
measures. Please visit www.sedarplus.ca to view our annual and interim MD&As, under Reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures, for each of the above-mentioned periods for a description
of each non-GAAP measure as well as the reconciliations to GAAP measures.
(2) Normalized Adjusted Earnings Per Share was $4.24 after excluding one-time gains on the sale of a building and small, non-core pest control business.
FirstService.com
Our strong
performance
in 2024 again
demonstrated
our ability to
capitalize on
the opportunity
before us.
FirstService.com
Notice of Shareholders’ Meeting
The annual meeting of the shareholders will be held virtually
on Wednesday, April 2, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. (ET).
Corporate Information
Registrar and Transfer Agent
Canada – TSX Trust Company
Phone: 1.866.600.5869
E-mail: tmxeinvestorservices@tmx.com
U.S. co-transfer agent – Computershare
Phone: 1.800.368.5948
E-mail: webqueries@computershare.com
Stock Exchange Listings
NASDAQ Global Select Market – FSV
Toronto Stock Exchange – FSV
FirstService common shares are included
in the S&P/TSX 60 Composite Index.
Head Office
1255 Bay Street, Suite 600
Toronto, Ontario M5R 2A9
Canada
Phone: 1.416.960.9566
A complete digital version of the Annual Report is available
in the investors area of our website, www.firstservice.com.