Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on COLM. Zacks Research cut shares of Columbia Sportswear from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $68.00 price target (up from $67.00) on shares of Columbia Sportswear in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. BTIG Research raised their price target on Columbia Sportswear from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Columbia Sportswear from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, August 17th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $49.00 price objective (up from $47.00) on shares of Columbia Sportswear in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $66.40.

Columbia Sportswear Trading Up 1.9%

NASDAQ COLM opened at $70.43 on Friday. Columbia Sportswear has a 12 month low of $49.56 and a 12 month high of $72.63. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.15. The company has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45 and a beta of 0.88.

Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The textile maker reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.38. Columbia Sportswear had a return on equity of 11.71% and a net margin of 6.97%. The company had revenue of $962.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $944.91 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Columbia Sportswear will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Sportswear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Columbia Sportswear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

Insider Activity at Columbia Sportswear

In other Columbia Sportswear news, insider Joseph P. Boyle sold 19,129 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.47, for a total value of $1,348,020.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,776,714 shares in the company, valued at $195,675,035.58. This trade represents a 0.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Lisa Kulok sold 6,857 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.47, for a total transaction of $469,498.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 8,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $560,084.60. This represents a 45.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,361 shares of company stock valued at $1,844,073. 51.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Sportswear

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Sportswear during the 2nd quarter worth about $152,164,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Columbia Sportswear by 15.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,222,770 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $121,824,000 after purchasing an additional 301,277 shares during the period. Tassel Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Columbia Sportswear during the second quarter worth about $10,085,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in Columbia Sportswear by 7.6% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 292,953 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $16,057,000 after purchasing an additional 20,797 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in Columbia Sportswear during the second quarter worth about $16,691,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.76% of the company’s stock.

About Columbia Sportswear

Columbia Sportswear Company is an outdoor and active lifestyle apparel, footwear, accessories and equipment company headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1938 as the Columbia Hat Company, the business has grown into a global outdoor brand focused on products designed for activities such as hiking, skiing, fishing, camping and everyday outdoor use.

The company markets products under the Columbia, Sorel, Mountain Hardwear and prAna brands. Its offerings include jackets, shirts, pants, base layers, footwear, hats, gloves, backpacks and other outdoor accessories.