Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) Sets New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $1,635.58 (last $1,627.36) on Tuesday with about 425,343 shares changing hands and a market cap of roughly $57.25 billion.
• Strong quarterly results: Comfort Systems reported $9.37 EPS vs. $6.75 expected and revenue of $2.65 billion (up 41.7% YoY vs. $2.34B expected), and analysts maintain a consensus Buy with an average target of $1,573.67 and some raised targets (DA Davidson $1,800).
• Insider sales and heavy institutional ownership: insiders sold 37,288 shares (~$53.7M) over the last 90 days (including large February sales by Brian E. Lane), while institutional investors own about 96.51% of the stock; the company also increased its quarterly dividend to $0.70 (annualized $2.80, ~0.2% yield).

Shares of Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (NYSE:FIX - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $1,635.58 and last traded at $1,627.3610, with a volume of 425343 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $1,592.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on FIX shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,611.00 price objective on shares of Comfort Systems USA in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Comfort Systems USA from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 3rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Comfort Systems USA from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Comfort Systems USA from $1,200.00 to $1,800.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Comfort Systems USA in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,573.67.

Comfort Systems USA Stock Performance

The company's 50-day simple moving average is $1,385.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,110.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $57.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.31 and a beta of 1.60.

Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The construction company reported $9.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.75 by $2.62. Comfort Systems USA had a net margin of 11.23% and a return on equity of 48.52%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.09 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 41.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Comfort Systems USA, Inc. will post 16.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comfort Systems USA Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.2%. This is an increase from Comfort Systems USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Comfort Systems USA's payout ratio is 9.69%.

Insider Activity

In other Comfort Systems USA news, insider Brian E. Lane sold 9,365 shares of Comfort Systems USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,453.12, for a total transaction of $13,608,468.80. Following the transaction, the insider owned 171,523 shares of the company's stock, valued at $249,243,501.76. This trade represents a 5.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director William J. Sandbrook sold 2,500 shares of Comfort Systems USA stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,443.32, for a total transaction of $3,608,300.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 9,166 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,229,471.12. This represents a 21.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 37,288 shares of company stock worth $53,677,038. Corporate insiders own 1.59% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Comfort Systems USA

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of FIX. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 17.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,310,126 shares of the construction company's stock worth $4,022,597,000 after purchasing an additional 625,567 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Comfort Systems USA during the 4th quarter worth approximately $469,606,000. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 35.6% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,428,674 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,333,367,000 after purchasing an additional 375,118 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 39.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,185,909 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,103,453,000 after purchasing an additional 332,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 37,987.3% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 310,031 shares of the construction company's stock worth $289,349,000 after purchasing an additional 309,217 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.51% of the company's stock.

About Comfort Systems USA

Comfort Systems USA, Inc is a U.S.-based mechanical contracting company that provides a range of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) services to commercial, industrial and institutional customers. The company focuses on the design, installation, maintenance and repair of HVAC systems, and it supports projects from initial engineering and system selection through long-term service agreements and upgrades.

Its service offerings include new construction and retrofit installations, preventive and corrective maintenance, emergency repair, energy management and building automation systems.

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