Wells Fargo & Company Downgrades Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) to Equal Weight

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report released on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $27.00 target price on the financial services provider's stock, down from their prior target price of $29.00. Wells Fargo & Company's price target points to a potential upside of 7.23% from the company's previous close.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on COLB. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $27.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $26.50 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.79.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

COLB traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $25.18. The stock had a trading volume of 1,545,394 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,818,099. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $23.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.67 and a beta of 0.62. Columbia Banking System has a 52 week low of $19.61 and a 52 week high of $32.85.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $481.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $482.86 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 11.12%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Columbia Banking System will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in COLB. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 194.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 794 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 141.3% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,636 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 958 shares during the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.