Short Interest in Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) Expands By 353.8%

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 19,995,956 shares, an increase of 353.8% from the July 15th total of 4,406,616 shares. Approximately 9.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 14,044,754 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of CLBK. USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in Columbia Financial during the first quarter worth about $44,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised 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 buying an additional 2,508 shares during the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Financial in the third quarter worth $120,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Financial in the fourth quarter worth $168,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Columbia Financial by 73.1% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,122 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,000 after purchasing an additional 5,119 shares in the last quarter. 12.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Columbia Financial Stock Up 4.7%

Columbia Financial stock traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $11.61. 7,959,721 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,046,219. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $17.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $2.66 billion, a PE ratio of 34.61 and a beta of 0.23. Columbia Financial has a one year low of $6.21 and a one year high of $11.74.

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Columbia Financial had a return on equity of 5.29% and a net margin of 11.19%.The firm had revenue of $73.75 million during the quarter. On average, research analysts forecast that Columbia Financial will post 0.33 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. Columbia Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on CLBK shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Columbia Financial in a report on Friday, June 5th. Piper Sandler upgraded Columbia Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $19.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Columbia Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Columbia Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.50.

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.