Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Issues Positive Forecast for Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Stock Price

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) had its target price raised by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $31.00 to $33.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $31.00 in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Cowen initiated coverage on Columbia Banking System in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.50.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 0.1%

COLB stock opened at $28.95 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.66 billion, a PE ratio of 13.04 and a beta of 0.62. Columbia Banking System has a twelve month low of $19.61 and a twelve month high of $29.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $26.94 and its 200-day moving average is $25.64.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.13% and a net margin of 15.98%.The business had revenue of $348.47 million during the quarter. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 28th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This is a boost from Columbia Banking System’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.1%. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the second quarter valued at about $2,187,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the second quarter valued at approximately $289,000. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the second quarter valued at approximately $687,000. Angel Oak Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 27.8% during the 2nd quarter. Angel Oak Capital Advisors LLC now owns 46,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,075,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new position in Columbia Banking System in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $303,000. 92.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Company Profile

Columbia Banking System, Inc operates as the holding company of Umpqua Bank that provides banking, private banking, mortgage, and other financial services in the United States. The company offers deposit products, including business, non-interest bearing checking, interest-bearing checking and savings, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts; and insured cash sweep and other investment sweep solutions.