Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB Shares Acquired by Moody Aldrich Partners LLC

Key Points

• Moody Aldrich Partners boosted its stake in Columbia Banking System by 21.7% in Q4 to 330,792 shares (about $9.25 million), making COLB its fifth-largest holding.
• Research coverage is mixed with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $31.73, while individual calls range from Piper Sandler's Overweight $36 target to UBS's neutral $30.
• Columbia beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.72 vs. $0.68) and reported revenue up 37.9% year-over-year to $675M, and it pays a quarterly dividend that annualizes to $1.48 for a 5.0% yield.

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC grew its stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) by 21.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 330,792 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 59,073 shares during the period. Columbia Banking System comprises 1.7% of Moody Aldrich Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Columbia Banking System worth $9,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 612.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System during the third quarter worth $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 194.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 794 shares during the period. First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on COLB. UBS Group started coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 target price on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Columbia Banking System from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $31.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Columbia Banking System news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,240 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.85, for a total transaction of $64,624.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 98,229 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,833,906.65. The trade was a 2.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, 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 value of $403,926.75. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 19,354 shares of company stock worth $561,971. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of Columbia Banking System stock opened at $29.62 on Wednesday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 52-week low of $21.91 and a 52-week high of $32.70. The company has a market capitalization of $8.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a 50 day moving average of $28.38 and a 200 day moving average of $28.26.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. 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 19.28% and a return on equity of 11.41%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 37.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.67 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio is 58.96%.

About Columbia Banking System

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.

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