Needham & Company LLC Begins Coverage on Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM)

Equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC assumed coverage on shares of Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM - Get Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a "hold" rating on the textile maker's stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on COLM. Barclays cut their price target on Columbia Sportswear from $64.00 to $62.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Columbia Sportswear from $91.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $68.00 price target (down previously from $80.00) on shares of Columbia Sportswear in a research note on Monday, April 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on Columbia Sportswear from $42.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Columbia Sportswear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.00.

Columbia Sportswear Stock Performance

Columbia Sportswear stock traded down $0.70 on Friday, reaching $63.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 854,767 shares, compared to its average volume of 595,400. Columbia Sportswear has a twelve month low of $58.44 and a twelve month high of $92.88. The company has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.49, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.00. The business's fifty day moving average price is $66.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.54.

Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The textile maker reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.07. Columbia Sportswear had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 6.63%. The business had revenue of $778.45 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $763.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.71 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Columbia Sportswear will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Columbia Sportswear

In other news, Director Stephen E. Babson sold 2,776 shares of Columbia Sportswear stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.94, for a total transaction of $183,049.44. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 128,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,460,695.46. This trade represents a 2.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 44.70% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Sportswear

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in COLM. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Columbia Sportswear by 184.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 299 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new stake in Columbia Sportswear in the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in Columbia Sportswear by 208.3% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 555 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Columbia Sportswear in the 1st quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its position in Columbia Sportswear by 12,400.0% in the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 625 shares of the textile maker's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 620 shares in the last quarter. 47.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Columbia Sportswear

Columbia Sportswear Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, markets, and distributes outdoor, active, and everyday lifestyle apparel, footwear, accessories, and equipment in the United States, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Canada. The company provides apparel, accessories, and equipment for hiking, trail running, snow, fishing, hunting, mountaineering, climbing, skiing and snowboarding, trail, and outdoor activities.