Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.08 EPS

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.08, Zacks reports. Columbia Financial had a net margin of 10.91% and a return on equity of 5.12%.

Columbia Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:CLBK traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $10.95. 5,148,103 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,814,688. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $19.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.39. The company has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a PE ratio of 43.80 and a beta of 0.25. Columbia Financial has a 12-month low of $6.21 and a 12-month high of $11.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on CLBK. Wall Street Zen raised Columbia Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Columbia Financial in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.50.

Institutional Trading of Columbia Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Columbia Financial by 2,322.2% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 2,508 shares during the period. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Columbia Financial in the third quarter worth $120,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new position in shares of Columbia Financial in the fourth quarter worth $168,000. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Columbia Financial by 7.9% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,806 shares of the company’s stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 939 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Columbia Financial by 33.0% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 3,564 shares in the last quarter. 12.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Columbia Financial Company Profile

Columbia Financial, Inc is the bank holding company for Columbia Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Through its principal subsidiary, Columbia Bank, the company offers a comprehensive suite of retail and commercial banking products and services. These offerings include deposit accounts, consumer and mortgage lending, commercial real estate financing, and business banking solutions tailored to small- and medium-sized enterprises.

On the consumer side, Columbia Bank provides checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, home equity lines of credit, and residential mortgage loans.