Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) and EMCOR Group (NYSE:EME) are both mid-cap construction companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, risk and dividends.
Profitability
This table compares Comfort Systems USA and EMCOR Group's net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets |
---|
Comfort Systems USA | 4.91% | 21.36% | 8.16% |
EMCOR Group | 1.57% | 16.86% | 7.10% |
Volatility and Risk
Comfort Systems USA has a beta of 1.05, suggesting that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, EMCOR Group has a beta of 1.18, suggesting that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
91.5% of Comfort Systems USA shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.3% of EMCOR Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.2% of Comfort Systems USA shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.9% of EMCOR Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Comfort Systems USA and EMCOR Group's top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio |
---|
Comfort Systems USA | $2.62 billion | 1.02 | $114.32 million | $3.00 | 24.50 |
EMCOR Group | $9.17 billion | 0.64 | $325.14 million | $5.75 | 18.62 |
EMCOR Group has higher revenue and earnings than Comfort Systems USA. EMCOR Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Comfort Systems USA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Comfort Systems USA and EMCOR Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score |
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Comfort Systems USA | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.67 |
EMCOR Group | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
Comfort Systems USA presently has a consensus target price of $42.50, indicating a potential downside of 42.17%. EMCOR Group has a consensus target price of $84.00, indicating a potential downside of 21.54%. Given EMCOR Group's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe EMCOR Group is more favorable than Comfort Systems USA.
Dividends
Comfort Systems USA pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. EMCOR Group pays an annual dividend of $0.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Comfort Systems USA pays out 14.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. EMCOR Group pays out 9.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Comfort Systems USA has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years and EMCOR Group has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Comfort Systems USA is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Summary
EMCOR Group beats Comfort Systems USA on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.