Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Position in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by purchasing an additional 25,162 shares, bringing its total ownership to over 21 million shares, representing 10.16% of the company's stock worth approximately $532 million.
• Columbia Banking System reported $0.76 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analyst estimates, with revenue rising 8.2% year-over-year to $511.55 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $1.44 and a dividend yield of 5.6%.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) by 0.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,353,837 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 25,162 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 10.16% of Columbia Banking System worth $532,565,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 141.3% in the first 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. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Financial Harvest LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the 1st quarter worth about $53,000. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 1st quarter worth about $95,000. Finally, Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 1st quarter worth about $118,000. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on COLB. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on Columbia Banking System in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Zacks Research raised shares of Columbia Banking System to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Raymond James Financial set a $27.00 target price on shares of Columbia Banking System and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $26.50 to $24.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.86.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of COLB traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $25.82. 268,231 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,962,313. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $19.61 and a fifty-two week high of $32.85. The company has a market cap of $5.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.24 and a beta of 0.62. The firm's fifty day moving average is $24.11 and its 200 day moving average is $24.33.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $511.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $492.00 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 17.98%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.67 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio is 57.14%.

About Columbia Banking System

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.