Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) EVP Sells $24,577.51 in Stock

Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) EVP Kumi Yamamoto Baruffi sold 937 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.23, for a total transaction of $24,577.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 53,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,408,944.45. This trade represents a 1.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 0.8%

COLB opened at $26.41 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $29.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $27.80. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $19.61 and a fifty-two week high of $32.70. The firm has a market cap of $7.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.69 and a beta of 0.60.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $715.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $693.23 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 17.11%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.71 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.49%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in Columbia Banking System by 612.8% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 864 shares during the period. West Oak Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 194.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COLB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.50 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $33.00 target price on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.04.

Columbia Banking System Company Profile

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.