Maltese Capital Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Key Points

• Maltese Capital Management cut its stake in Columbia Banking System by 19.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 60,500 shares and leaving it with 245,000 shares valued at about $6.85 million.
• Insider activity included CMO Devine David Moore selling 3,872 shares at $29.77 each, a transaction worth about $115,269 and reducing his holdings by 17.2%.
• Columbia Banking System reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.72 per share and recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, equal to an annualized yield of 4.8%.

Maltese Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) by 19.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 245,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 60,500 shares during the period. Maltese Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Columbia Banking System worth $6,848,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in COLB. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 35.4% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 56,675 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 14,824 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 23.7% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 82,719 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,063,000 after acquiring an additional 15,845 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 572.7% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 484,730 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,089,000 after purchasing an additional 412,674 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in Columbia Banking System by 28.4% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 492,775 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,290,000 after purchasing an additional 108,994 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 887,267 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $22,128,000 after buying an additional 16,165 shares during the period. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.77, for a total value of $115,269.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 18,636 shares in the company, valued at approximately $554,793.72. The trade was a 17.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Columbia Banking System Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:COLB opened at $30.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.33 and a beta of 0.63. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.91 and a 12-month high of $32.70. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $29.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.02.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 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%. Columbia Banking System's revenue was up 37.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.67 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on COLB. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. 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 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $32.13.

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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