Sterling Infrastructure (STRL) Competitors

Sterling Infrastructure (NASDAQ:STRL) and Comfort Systems USA (NYSE:FIX) are both construction companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, community ranking, analyst recommendations, earnings and media sentiment.

Is STRL or FIX more profitable?

Sterling Infrastructure has a net margin of 8.77% compared to Comfort Systems USA's net margin of 7.18%. Comfort Systems USA's return on equity of 32.74% beat Sterling Infrastructure's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sterling Infrastructure	8.77%	27.52%	9.76%
Comfort Systems USA	7.18%	32.74%	11.82%

Does the media favor STRL or FIX?

In the previous week, Comfort Systems USA had 21 more articles in the media than Sterling Infrastructure. MarketBeat recorded 34 mentions for Comfort Systems USA and 13 mentions for Sterling Infrastructure. Comfort Systems USA's average media sentiment score of 1.24 beat Sterling Infrastructure's score of 1.06 indicating that Comfort Systems USA is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Sterling Infrastructure	9 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Comfort Systems USA	23 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	6 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has better earnings and valuation, STRL or FIX?

Comfort Systems USA has higher revenue and earnings than Sterling Infrastructure. Sterling Infrastructure 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.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sterling Infrastructure	$1.97B	1.81	$138.65M	$5.92	19.64
Comfort Systems USA	$5.21B	2.48	$323.40M	$13.07	27.71

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in STRL or FIX?

81.0% of Sterling Infrastructure shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.5% of Comfort Systems USA shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of Sterling Infrastructure shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.8% of Comfort Systems USA shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Do analysts prefer STRL or FIX?

Sterling Infrastructure currently has a consensus target price of $115.00, indicating a potential downside of 1.11%. Comfort Systems USA has a consensus target price of $506.75, indicating a potential upside of 39.92%. Given Comfort Systems USA's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Comfort Systems USA is more favorable than Sterling Infrastructure.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sterling Infrastructure	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Comfort Systems USA	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Which has more risk & volatility, STRL or FIX?

Sterling Infrastructure has a beta of 1.24, meaning that its share price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Comfort Systems USA has a beta of 1.22, meaning that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the MarketBeat Community favor STRL or FIX?

Sterling Infrastructure received 19 more outperform votes than Comfort Systems USA when rated by MarketBeat users. However, 65.55% of users gave Comfort Systems USA an outperform vote while only 56.38% of users gave Sterling Infrastructure an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Sterling Infrastructure	Outperform Votes 274 56.38%	Underperform Votes 212 43.62%
Comfort Systems USA	Outperform Votes 255 65.55%	Underperform Votes 134 34.45%

Summary

Comfort Systems USA beats Sterling Infrastructure on 14 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.