Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on COLB. Citigroup increased their price target on Columbia Banking System from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Columbia Banking System from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $27.00 to $31.00 in a report on Monday, September 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of 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. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $33.00 target price on Columbia Banking System in a report on Monday, November 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.58.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 0.5%

NASDAQ COLB opened at $28.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $8.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.81 and a beta of 0.62. Columbia Banking System has a 52-week low of $19.61 and a 52-week high of $29.61. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $27.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.94.

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

Columbia Banking System Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 28th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. This is an increase from Columbia Banking System’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.67%.

Institutional Trading of Columbia Banking System

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in COLB. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 2.0% in the second quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 20,714 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its position in Columbia Banking System by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 9,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after buying an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. grew its stake in Columbia Banking System by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. now owns 9,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 37,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $966,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 37,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $976,000 after purchasing an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

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.