Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $67.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.10 million. Columbia Financial had a return on equity of 5.15% and a net margin of 10.91%.

Columbia Financial Stock Down 2.2%

CLBK stock opened at $18.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Columbia Financial has a 1-year low of $13.19 and a 1-year high of $18.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $17.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.55. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.73 and a beta of 0.19.

Institutional Trading of Columbia Financial

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in Columbia Financial by 2,322.2% during the third 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 last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Financial during the third quarter valued at $120,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $168,000. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Columbia Financial by 7.9% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $192,000 after purchasing an additional 939 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in Columbia Financial by 33.0% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 14,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 3,564 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 12.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Brean Capital lowered shares of Columbia Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of Columbia Financial in a research note on Monday, March 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Columbia Financial from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $18.50.

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.