Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB Shares Bought by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 156.5% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 66,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 40,708 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $1,830,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 5,949 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 38,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after buying an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Columbia Banking System by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 122,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,422,000 after buying an additional 456 shares in the last quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its stake in Columbia Banking System by 1.2% in the third quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 37,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $966,000 after buying an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Laurion Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Laurion Capital Management LP now owns 75,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,102,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on COLB. 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 objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Fundamental Research set a $35.00 price target on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.65.

Insider Transactions at Columbia Banking System

In other Columbia Banking System news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.77, for a total transaction of $115,269.44. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 18,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $554,793.72. The trade was a 17.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

Shares of COLB opened at $31.72 on Friday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 1-year low of $22.77 and a 1-year high of $32.77. The stock has a market cap of $9.18 billion, a PE ratio of 12.64 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $30.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.29.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $675.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.34 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.67 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 37.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is 58.96%.

Columbia Banking System 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.