Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) Shares Acquired by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 19.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,625 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $427,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in Columbia Banking System by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 43,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 60,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,641,000 after buying an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 39,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,025,000 after buying an additional 544 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Columbia Banking System by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 31,238 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $844,000 after buying an additional 612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 49,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,342,000 after buying an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 0.8 %

COLB opened at $24.94 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $5.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.82 and a beta of 0.62. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.08 and a 52 week high of $32.85. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.53.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.21% and a net margin of 17.99%. Sell-side analysts expect that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.77%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is currently 56.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on COLB shares. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stephens decreased their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $116,461.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 104,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,725,545.31. The trade was a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Columbia Banking System

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.