Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (NYSE:FIX) Short Interest Update

Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (NYSE:FIX) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 744,700 shares, a growth of 17.4% from the December 15th total of 634,300 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 331,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 2.1% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Activity at Comfort Systems USA

In related news, Director Vance W. Tang sold 2,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.00, for a total value of $1,053,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,144,220. This represents a 32.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO T Mckenna Trent sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $484.81, for a total value of $1,939,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 23,990 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,630,591.90. The trade was a 14.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 36,200 shares of company stock valued at $15,431,250. 1.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Comfort Systems USA in the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 183.3% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 85 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Comfort Systems USA during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 59.5% during the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 126 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in Comfort Systems USA in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Institutional investors own 96.51% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FIX has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on Comfort Systems USA in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $524.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com lowered Comfort Systems USA from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. UBS Group raised their target price on Comfort Systems USA from $525.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Comfort Systems USA in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $525.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $493.50.

Comfort Systems USA Stock Performance

FIX traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $504.62. The stock had a trading volume of 332,588 shares, compared to its average volume of 274,778. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $462.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $393.17. Comfort Systems USA has a 1 year low of $200.15 and a 1 year high of $510.79. The stock has a market cap of $17.96 billion, a PE ratio of 38.61 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The construction company reported $4.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.97 by $0.12. Comfort Systems USA had a return on equity of 32.74% and a net margin of 7.18%. The company had revenue of $1.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.74 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Comfort Systems USA will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Comfort Systems USA Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.28%. This is an increase from Comfort Systems USA’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Comfort Systems USA’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.71%.

Comfort Systems USA Company Profile

Comfort Systems USA, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides mechanical and electrical installation, renovation, maintenance, repair, and replacement services for the mechanical and electrical services industry in the United States. It operates through two segments, Mechanical and Electrical. The company offers heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, as well as plumbing, electrical, piping and controls, off-site construction, monitoring, and fire protection.