Columbus McKinnon (NASDAQ:CMCO) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Time to Buy?

Columbus McKinnon Co. (NASDAQ:CMCO) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 389,270 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 15% from the previous session’s volume of 337,472 shares.The stock last traded at $20.04 and had previously closed at $20.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CMCO has been the topic of several recent research reports. DA Davidson downgraded shares of Columbus McKinnon from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $35.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Columbus McKinnon from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Columbus McKinnon Stock Down 5.5 %

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.18. The firm has a market cap of $565.65 million, a PE ratio of 37.33 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Columbus McKinnon (NASDAQ:CMCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 10th. The industrial products company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.18). Columbus McKinnon had a net margin of 1.51% and a return on equity of 9.20%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Columbus McKinnon Co. will post 2.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbus McKinnon Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Columbus McKinnon’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Christopher J. Stephens acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $37.34 per share, for a total transaction of $37,340.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,014 shares in the company, valued at $224,562.76. This represents a 19.94 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.98% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Columbus McKinnon

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CMCO. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Columbus McKinnon during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,416,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Columbus McKinnon by 117.8% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 737,250 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,455,000 after buying an additional 398,826 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Columbus McKinnon during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $14,799,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC grew its position in Columbus McKinnon by 95.3% during the fourth quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 730,125 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,190,000 after acquiring an additional 356,232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC raised its stake in shares of Columbus McKinnon by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,547,958 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $57,646,000 after acquiring an additional 184,615 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.96% of the company’s stock.

Columbus McKinnon Company Profile

Columbus McKinnon Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets motion solutions for moving, lifting, positioning, and securing materials worldwide. It offers manual, battery, electric, and air hoists; steel, rack, and pinion jacks; winches, hydraulic jacks and tools, trolleys and its clamps, and lifting tables; skates and heavy load moving systems; material handling equipment; mobile, workplace, and jib cranes; crane components and kits; and below-the-hook lifting devices, lifting slings, and lashing systems.