Short Interest in Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) Increases By 26.2%

Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,320,000 shares, a growth of 26.2% from the March 31st total of 2,630,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 526,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.3 days. Approximately 9.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Columbia Sportswear Trading Up 0.7 %

COLM traded up $0.54 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $79.63. 678,606 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 522,785. The company has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $78.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.15. Columbia Sportswear has a 1-year low of $66.01 and a 1-year high of $86.11.

Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The textile maker reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.36. Columbia Sportswear had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 7.20%. The company had revenue of $769.98 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $740.62 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.74 EPS. Columbia Sportswear’s revenue was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Columbia Sportswear will post 3.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Sportswear Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.51%. Columbia Sportswear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.27%.

Insider Activity

In other Columbia Sportswear news, Director Ronald E. Nelson sold 5,768 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.05, for a total transaction of $473,264.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 16,857 shares in the company, valued at $1,383,116.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director Ronald E. Nelson sold 5,768 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.05, for a total value of $473,264.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 16,857 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,383,116.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen E. Babson sold 2,411 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.98, for a total transaction of $195,242.78. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 122,879 shares in the company, valued at $9,950,741.42. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 43.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Sportswear

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Sportswear by 10.7% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 22,811 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $1,690,000 after purchasing an additional 2,209 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Columbia Sportswear by 10.2% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 8,658 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $642,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Columbia Sportswear by 30.5% during the third quarter. Hunter Perkins Capital Management LLC now owns 4,535 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060 shares during the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its position in Columbia Sportswear by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 4,872 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in shares of Columbia Sportswear by 2.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 34,922 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $2,588,000 after acquiring an additional 824 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COLM has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on Columbia Sportswear from $62.00 to $59.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. StockNews.com lowered Columbia Sportswear from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Columbia Sportswear from $75.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $75.75.

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.