Columbia Financial's (CLBK) "Sell (D)" Rating Reaffirmed at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• Columbia Financial's stock has been reaffirmed with a "sell (d)" rating by Weiss Ratings, indicating ongoing concerns about the company's performance.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.12, surpassing estimates, and had a revenue of $63.88 million, significantly higher than the consensus estimate of $53.20 million.
• Columbia Financial's Board authorized a $1.80 million stock repurchase plan, which suggests that management believes the stock is currently undervalued.

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "sell (d)" rating reissued by analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Columbia Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ CLBK traded up $0.04 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $14.90. 105,010 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 148,856. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $1.56 billion, a PE ratio of 248.33 and a beta of 0.34. Columbia Financial has a fifty-two week low of $12.64 and a fifty-two week high of $19.28. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $14.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.59.

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. Columbia Financial had a return on equity of 3.58% and a net margin of 1.24%.The company had revenue of $63.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $53.20 million. Research analysts expect that Columbia Financial will post 0.43 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Financial declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, September 8th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.80 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 0.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Columbia Financial

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in shares of Columbia Financial by 79.1% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,637 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 723 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Columbia Financial by 4,061.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,580 shares of the company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 2,518 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Columbia Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $141,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Columbia Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $152,000. Finally, Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP boosted its position in shares of Columbia Financial by 27.7% during the 2nd quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP now owns 15,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $219,000 after acquiring an additional 3,274 shares during the last quarter. 12.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Columbia Financial

Columbia Financial, Inc, a bank holding company, provides various financial services to businesses and consumers in the United States. Its deposit products include checking, interest-earning checking products and municipal, savings and club deposits, and money market accounts, as well as certificates of deposit.

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