Lone Peak Global Investors LLC Raises Stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Lone Peak Global Investors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 5.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 569,183 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,925 shares during the quarter. Columbia Banking System comprises about 2.5% of Lone Peak Global Investors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Lone Peak Global Investors LLC owned approximately 0.20% of Columbia Banking System worth $18,242,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in COLB. BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. purchased a new position in Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter valued at about $9,782,000. Easterly Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 10.6% during the 4th quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 713,206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,934,000 after acquiring an additional 68,388 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 461,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,911,000 after acquiring an additional 49,454 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 3,617.7% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 75,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,070,000 after acquiring an additional 73,439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 2,033,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $55,771,000 after acquiring an additional 228,825 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COLB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. DA Davidson raised Columbia Banking System from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays decreased their target price on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Columbia Banking System currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.62.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

Shares of Columbia Banking System stock opened at $29.32 on Wednesday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.83 and a 1 year high of $33.67. The company has a market capitalization of $8.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.62. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $31.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.99.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $677.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.40 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.33% and a net margin of 19.96%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.76 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th will be given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 28th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.96%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief marketing officer owned 18,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $554,793.72. This trade represents a 17.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.