ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Has $4.06 Million Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) by 23.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 162,561 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 30,425 shares during the quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. owned 0.08% of Columbia Banking System worth $4,055,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the fourth quarter worth about $296,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 780 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,315,896 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $197,602,000 after purchasing an additional 206,643 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keybank National Association OH acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth approximately $242,000. 92.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COLB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $27.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "hold" rating and a $27.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen started coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Columbia Banking System presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $29.29.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 1.5%

NASDAQ:COLB traded up $0.38 on Friday, reaching $25.45. The stock had a trading volume of 2,244,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,815,217. The company has a market capitalization of $5.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 0.62. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 1-year low of $19.18 and a 1-year high of $32.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $23.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.00.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $481.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $482.86 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 16.85% and a return on equity of 11.12%. Columbia Banking System's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.66%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio 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.