Raymond James Financial Upgrades Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) to Strong-Buy

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial has upgraded Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating, with a new price target of $31.00, indicating an anticipated upside of 18.96% from its current stock price.
• Columbia Banking System has shown positive earnings performance, reporting an EPS of $0.76 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.66 and marking an 8.2% revenue increase year-over-year.
• Current consensus ratings for COLB indicate 2 strong buy ratings, 3 buy ratings, and 10 hold ratings, leading to an average price target of $29.36 among analysts.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Raymond James Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has a $31.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. Raymond James Financial's price objective suggests a potential upside of 18.96% from the stock's current price.

COLB has been the subject of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Columbia Banking System from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Stephens raised Columbia Banking System from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $30.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research raised Columbia Banking System to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $27.00 price target for the company. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $29.36.

Columbia Banking System Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of Columbia Banking System stock opened at $26.06 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.34 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.22. Columbia Banking System has a 12 month low of $19.61 and a 12 month high of $32.85.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $511.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.67 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Columbia Banking System will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Columbia Banking System

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 194.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 794 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 141.3% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,636 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 958 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 53.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,790 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Harvest LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,000. 92.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Company 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.

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