Marshall Wace LLP Makes New Investment in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 11,546 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $312,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COLB. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Columbia Banking System by 62.0% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 780 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 171.3% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,127 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 1,343 shares during the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ COLB traded up $0.65 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $24.05. 2,465,333 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,769,751. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.47 and a beta of 0.59. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.11 and a 52 week high of $32.85. The company's 50 day moving average price is $23.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.78.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $481.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.86 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.99% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The company's revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.02%.

Insider Transactions at Columbia Banking System

In related news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $116,461.19. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 104,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,725,545.31. This trade represents a 4.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COLB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Stephens decreased their price target on Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced 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 report on Thursday, April 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.85.

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.