Columbia Sportswear Co. (COLM) recently hit a new multi-year high ahead of its Q2 results set for Oct 21. With an average earnings surprise of 43% over the last four quarters and a strong industry rank, this Zacks #1 rank stock has plenty of upward momentum.
Company Description
Columbia Sportswear Co. sells outdoor apparel, footwear and out door accessories worldwide. The company was founded in 1938 and has a market cap of $1.95 billion.
Although COLM has been trending higher for most of the last 18 months, shares got an extra boost on July 22 after the company reported strong Q2 earnings that came in ahead of expectations.
Second-Quarter Results
Revenue for the period was up 24% from last year to $222 million. Earnings also came in better than expected at a loss of 31 cents, well ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate calling for a loss of 42 cents, where the company now has an average earnings surprise of 43% over the last four quarters. The loss is related to Q2 being the slowest of the year for the company.
Columbia saw a very nice mix of domestic and international sales during the quarter, with sales in the United States, its largest regional segment, up 27% to $124 million. Business in the emerging markets was even better, where sales were up 30% to $52 million.
Awesome Balance Sheet
Columbia emerged from the quarter with an even stronger balance sheet, with cash and equivalents up more than $31 million from last year to $347 million against no debt.
Estimates
We haven’t seen much movement in estimates going into Columbia’s Q3 results set to hit the wire on Oct 21, with the current year up a penny in the last month to $2.24. The next-year estimate is up 2 cents in the same time to $2.73, a bullish 22% growth projection.
In light of recent gains, shares do look a bit pricey, trading with a forward P/E of 26X against its peer average of 16X.
2-Year Chart
COLM has posted big gains over the last 18 months, recently jumping higher with the strong market to hit a new multi-year high at $61.22. But in spite of the upward momentum, the stochastic below the chart is signaling that shares are still trading well away from over-bough territory. Take a look below.
Michael Vodicka is the Momentum Stock Strategist for Zacks.com. He is also the Editor in charge of the new Zacks Momentum Trader Service.
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