Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $32.1250.

COLB has been the subject of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Columbia Banking System from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

NASDAQ COLB opened at $31.31 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.99. Columbia Banking System has a 52-week low of $21.91 and a 52-week high of $32.70. The stock has a market cap of $9.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.47 and a beta of 0.63.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 19.28%.The business had revenue of $675.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $677.34 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.67 EPS. Columbia Banking System’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Columbia Banking System will post 3.08 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In other news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.77, for a total transaction of $115,269.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 18,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $554,793.72. This trade represents a 17.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,536,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $193,977,000 after buying an additional 929,862 shares during the last quarter. HoldCo Asset Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. HoldCo Asset Management LP now owns 5,722,786 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $147,305,000 after buying an additional 1,239,489 shares during the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $10,965,000. AMG National Trust Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,654,000. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 268.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC now owns 664,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,109,000 after buying an additional 484,304 shares during the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Columbia Banking System

Columbia Banking System, Inc is a bank holding company that operates through its principal subsidiary, Columbia State Bank. Headquartered in Tacoma, Washington, the company provides a full range of banking and financial services to commercial, small business and consumer customers. Its branch network is concentrated in the Pacific Northwest, with locations across Washington, Oregon and Idaho, where it aims to combine local decision-making with the resources of a larger institution.

The company’s offerings include commercial real estate lending, construction and development financing, equipment and small business loans, and deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts.