Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Has $35.73 Million Stock Position in Columbia Financial $CLBK

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) by 2.6% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,040,794 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 51,677 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Columbia Financial were worth $35,734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in Columbia Financial by 2,322.2% in the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 2,508 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $120,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $168,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Columbia Financial by 73.1% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,000 after purchasing an additional 5,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Columbia Financial by 7.9% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,806 shares of the company’s stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 939 shares during the last quarter. 12.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Columbia Financial Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ CLBK opened at $10.74 on Wednesday. Columbia Financial has a one year low of $6.21 and a one year high of $11.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.46 billion, a PE ratio of 32.02 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $18.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.26.

Columbia Financial (NASDAQ:CLBK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $73.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $71.15 million. Columbia Financial had a net margin of 11.19% and a return on equity of 5.29%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Columbia Financial will post 0.33 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 12th.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Columbia Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Columbia Financial in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $18.50.

About Columbia Financial

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.