Aristotle Capital Boston LLC Acquires Shares of 637,487 Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Aristotle Capital Boston LLC bought a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 637,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $16,409,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of COLB. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 39.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 664,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,094,000 after buying an additional 187,551 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 145.3% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,019,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $180,671,000 after buying an additional 4,157,835 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 45.8% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 278,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,179,000 after buying an additional 87,627 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 25.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,495,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $192,941,000 after buying an additional 1,497,177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 66.5% during the third quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 121,972 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,140,000 after acquiring an additional 48,702 shares in the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

COLB opened at $26.23 on Friday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $19.61 and a fifty-two week high of $32.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $29.48 and a 200 day moving average of $27.82. The firm has a market cap of $7.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.60.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $715.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $693.23 million. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 11.40%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.71 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COLB has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.04.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Columbia Banking System news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,240 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.85, for a total transaction of $64,624.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 98,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,833,906.65. This represents a 2.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total value of $403,926.75. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 18,206 shares of company stock worth $531,859 in the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Columbia Banking System Profile

Columbia Banking System, Inc is a bank holding company that operates through its principal subsidiary, Columbia State Bank. Headquartered in Tacoma, Washington, the company provides a full range of banking and financial services to commercial, small business and consumer customers. Its branch network is concentrated in the Pacific Northwest, with locations across Washington, Oregon and Idaho, where it aims to combine local decision-making with the resources of a larger institution.

The company’s offerings include commercial real estate lending, construction and development financing, equipment and small business loans, and deposit products such as checking, savings and money market accounts.