Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $675.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $677.34 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 11.40%.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

Shares of COLB traded up $0.65 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $29.65. 3,065,794 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,894,317. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $28.52 and a 200-day moving average of $28.14. Columbia Banking System has a one year low of $21.91 and a one year high of $32.70. The firm has a market cap of $8.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.12 and a beta of 0.61.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on COLB shares. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.58.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the company’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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.85, for a total value of $64,624.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 98,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,833,906.65. This represents a 2.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,354 shares of company stock worth $561,971. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 31.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 18,106,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $506,069,000 after purchasing an additional 4,324,006 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 32.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,407,671 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $345,113,000 after purchasing an additional 3,290,560 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,564,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $351,179,000 after purchasing an additional 163,543 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings 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. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,170,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $116,559,000 after purchasing an additional 330,573 shares in the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Company 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.