Short Interest in Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (NYSE:FIX) Grows By 38.9%

Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (NYSE:FIX - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 1,030,000 shares, an increase of 38.9% from the February 13th total of 741,400 shares. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 497,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.1 days.

Comfort Systems USA Price Performance

Shares of FIX stock traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $357.31. The stock had a trading volume of 395,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 405,543. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.46 and a beta of 1.24. Comfort Systems USA has a one year low of $272.93 and a one year high of $553.09. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $408.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $416.55.

Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The construction company reported $4.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.77 billion. Comfort Systems USA had a return on equity of 35.28% and a net margin of 7.43%. Equities analysts forecast that Comfort Systems USA will post 16.85 EPS for the current year.

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Comfort Systems USA Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. This is a positive change from Comfort Systems USA's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Comfort Systems USA's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.95%.

Institutional Trading of Comfort Systems USA

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FIX. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Comfort Systems USA by 1,925.0% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 81 shares of the construction company's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 183.3% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 85 shares of the construction company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its position in shares of Comfort Systems USA by 352.6% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 86 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Comfort Systems USA by 131.1% during the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 104 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Comfort Systems USA by 41.3% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 106 shares of the construction company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. 96.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Northcoast Research started coverage on shares of Comfort Systems USA in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $525.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com raised Comfort Systems USA from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. Sidoti raised Comfort Systems USA from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $552.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Comfort Systems USA from $525.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Comfort Systems USA from $577.00 to $471.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Comfort Systems USA has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $530.75.

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.