Barclays PLC Boosts Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Barclays PLC raised its position in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 45.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,461,871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 454,497 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned about 0.70% of Columbia Banking System worth $37,629,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 41.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,851,392 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $768,375,000 after acquiring an additional 8,730,937 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 68.1% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,116,339 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $337,611,000 after purchasing an additional 5,313,883 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,117,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $236,538,000 after purchasing an additional 64,096 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 10,016,178 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $257,816,000 after purchasing an additional 1,067,491 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Columbia Banking System by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,816,989 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $182,761,000 after purchasing an additional 149,718 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COLB opened at $26.96 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.93 and a beta of 0.60. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $29.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.84. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12 month low of $19.61 and a 12 month high of $32.70.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.10. The firm 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 last year, the business posted $0.71 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In other news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,241 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total transaction of $63,308.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 100,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,838,249.25. The trade was a 2.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total transaction of $403,926.75. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 18,206 shares of company stock valued at $531,859 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on COLB shares. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $34.50 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Barclays increased their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.04.

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.