Wells Fargo & Company Increases Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) Price Target to $28.00

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has raised the price target for Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) from $27.00 to $28.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.35% from its previous close.
• Columbia Banking System's stock has experienced a 1.2% decline, trading at $24.27, with an average target price across analysts at $28.93.
• Institutional investors hold a significant interest in Columbia Banking System, owning 92.53% of the company's stock, highlighting strong institutional backing.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) had its price target increased by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $27.00 to $28.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective suggests a potential upside of 17.25% from the stock's previous close.

COLB has been the subject of a number of other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of 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. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $26.00 price objective (up previously from $22.00) on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen assumed coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, 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. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Columbia Banking System has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.93.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 1.9%

NASDAQ:COLB traded down $0.47 on Tuesday, reaching $23.88. The stock had a trading volume of 1,857,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,641,395. The company has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.48 and a beta of 0.62. Columbia Banking System has a 1-year low of $19.61 and a 1-year high of $32.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $23.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.70.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of COLB. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 194.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the first quarter valued at about $37,000. 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. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.53% of the company's stock.

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.