Two Sigma Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 22,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $713,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quad Cities Investment Group LLC increased its position in Columbia Banking System by 0.7% during the second quarter. Quad Cities Investment Group LLC now owns 45,802 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,468,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Columbia Banking System by 25.8% in the first quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 399 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 71,041 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,949,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 5.7% in the first quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 7,894 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $217,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 38,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after acquiring an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 1.1%

COLB stock opened at $29.32 on Wednesday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.83 and a 12-month high of $33.67. The company has a 50 day moving average of $31.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.99. The company has a market cap of $8.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.68, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.62.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $677.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $687.40 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.33% and a net margin of 19.96%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.76 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Friday, August 28th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 28th. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is presently 58.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In other news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.77, for a total transaction of $115,269.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer owned 18,636 shares in the company, valued at approximately $554,793.72. This represents a 17.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Barclays cut their price target on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. DA Davidson raised shares of Columbia Banking System from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $33.00 to $36.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Stephens boosted their price target on Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.62.

About Columbia Banking System

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.