Nuveen Asset Management LLC Cuts Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 501,069 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,997 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.24% of Columbia Banking System worth $13,534,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Columbia Banking System by 62.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on COLB. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $27.00 price target for the company. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $25.00 price target on shares of Columbia Banking System and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $29.64.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In other news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of Columbia Banking System 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 trade represents a 4.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of COLB stock traded down $0.43 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $23.43. 2,246,230 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,788,077. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $23.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.21. The stock has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a PE ratio of 9.22 and a beta of 0.59. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.20 and a 12 month high of $32.85.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $481.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $482.86 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. Columbia Banking System's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.02%.

Columbia Banking System 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.