Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Stock Price Target Cut by Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo lowered Columbia Banking System’s price target from $34 to $32 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying 11.47% potential upside from the previous close.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but generally cautious: five analysts rate the stock a Buy and eight rate it a Hold, producing a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $33.58.
• COLB shares rose 0.1% to $28.71. The company recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.76, beating estimates of $0.73, while revenue of $677 million fell short of expectations.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $34.00 to $32.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target would suggest a potential upside of 11.47% from the stock's previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Barclays reduced their price target on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.58.

Columbia Banking System Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of COLB stock traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $28.71. 190,122 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,886,421. Columbia Banking System has a 52 week low of $23.83 and a 52 week high of $33.67. The business has a 50 day moving average of $30.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.03. The company has a market capitalization of $8.12 billion, a PE ratio of 11.47, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.62.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $677.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $687.40 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 19.96% and a return on equity of 11.33%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Columbia Banking System will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System in the second quarter valued at $880,443,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,549,603 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $371,656,000 after buying an additional 408,087 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,422,137 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $207,449,000 after buying an additional 403,049 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,698,017 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $159,291,000 after buying an additional 151,297 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth about $103,012,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.53% of the company's stock.

About Columbia Banking System

Columbia Banking System, Inc NASDAQ: COLB is a bank holding company headquartered in Tacoma, Washington. Through its subsidiary, Umpqua Bank, the company provides a range of banking and financial services to individuals, families, businesses and institutions.

Umpqua Bank's offerings include deposit accounts, consumer and commercial lending, real estate finance, treasury management, cash management, investment services and other business banking solutions. The bank serves small and middle-market companies as well as retail customers through branches, digital banking platforms and relationship-based financial services.

Columbia Banking System traces its history to the formation of Columbia Bank in Washington in 1993.

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