Ceredex Value Advisors LLC Makes New $13.24 Million Investment in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 413,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $13,237,000. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.15% of Columbia Banking System as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the 2nd quarter worth about $880,443,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 135.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,782,222 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $354,754,000 after acquiring an additional 7,921,303 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 140.5% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,666,769 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $242,237,000 after purchasing an additional 5,063,212 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System during the second quarter worth approximately $120,867,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $103,012,000. 92.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on COLB. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Columbia Banking System from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Stephens upped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research lowered Columbia Banking System from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Fundamental Research set a $35.00 price target on Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.35.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In related news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.77, for a total transaction of $115,269.44. Following the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Columbia Banking System stock opened at $30.84 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.05. The stock has a market cap of $8.72 billion, a PE ratio of 12.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.63. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12 month low of $23.83 and a 12 month high of $33.67.

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

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Friday, August 28th will be given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 28th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.96%.

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.