Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Price Target Raised to $32.00

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) had its target price boosted by Barclays from $27.00 to $32.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the financial services provider's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Raymond James set a $27.00 price objective on Columbia Banking System and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. DA Davidson set a $25.00 price objective on Columbia Banking System and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Stephens lowered their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $29.85.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

NASDAQ COLB traded down $0.42 on Friday, hitting $22.30. 625,353 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,772,183. Columbia Banking System has a 52-week low of $18.11 and a 52-week high of $32.85. The company has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.78 and a beta of 0.53. The company's 50-day moving average price is $23.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.96.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.99% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The firm had revenue of $481.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $482.86 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.65 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Columbia Banking System will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Columbia Banking System's payout ratio is 61.02%.

Insider Transactions at Columbia Banking System

In other news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $116,461.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 104,869 shares in the company, valued at $2,725,545.31. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of COLB. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Columbia Banking System by 141.3% in the 1st 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. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Columbia Banking System Company Profile

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.