First Eagle Investment Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Key Points

• First Eagle Investment Management boosted its stake in Columbia Banking System by 241.3% in the fourth quarter, buying an additional 96,500 shares and bringing its total to 136,500 shares worth about $3.8 million.
• Columbia Banking System reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.72 per share, topping analyst estimates, while revenue rose 37.9% year over year.
• The bank also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, equal to an annualized yield of about 5.2%, while analysts currently have a consensus rating of Hold on the stock.

First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) by 241.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 136,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 96,500 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC's holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $3,815,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 39.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 664,110 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $17,094,000 after buying an additional 187,551 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 145.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,019,088 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $180,671,000 after buying an additional 4,157,835 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 14.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,536,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $193,977,000 after acquiring an additional 929,862 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 45.8% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 278,899 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,179,000 after acquiring an additional 87,627 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 78.9% in the third quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 69,234 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,782,000 after acquiring an additional 30,537 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.53% of the company's stock.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COLB opened at $28.71 on Thursday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a one year low of $21.91 and a one year high of $32.70. The stock has a market cap of $8.31 billion, a PE ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $28.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.52.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $675.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $677.34 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 19.28%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 37.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.67 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The company 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 of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. Columbia Banking System's payout ratio is presently 58.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COLB has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup boosted their price target on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Stephens raised their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.73.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In related news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,241 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total value of $63,308.25. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 100,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,838,249.25. This represents a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 5,629 shares of company stock worth $158,044. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

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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