Leeward Investments LLC MA Decreases Position in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

Leeward Investments LLC MA lessened its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 920,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,670 shares during the quarter. Columbia Banking System comprises approximately 1.2% of Leeward Investments LLC MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Leeward Investments LLC MA’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $24,551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter valued at $150,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 19.0% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 190,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,080,000 after purchasing an additional 30,464 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 46,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,238,000 after purchasing an additional 2,129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sippican Capital Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter valued at $822,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. TheStreet downgraded Columbia Banking System from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. UBS Group cut their target price on Columbia Banking System from $28.00 to $21.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on Columbia Banking System from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Columbia Banking System from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Columbia Banking System from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.19.

Insider Activity

In other Columbia Banking System news, Director Elizabeth Whitehead Seaton purchased 2,685 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $18.48 per share, with a total value of $49,618.80. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 25,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,018.48. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Columbia Banking System news, Director Luis Machuca acquired 4,889 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.58 per share, for a total transaction of $100,615.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 60,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,251,984.30. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Elizabeth Whitehead Seaton acquired 2,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $18.48 per share, with a total value of $49,618.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 25,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $462,018.48. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 35,133 shares of company stock worth $719,737 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

Shares of COLB opened at $19.12 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $18.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.14. The company has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.21 and a beta of 0.71. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.08 and a fifty-two week high of $28.11.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $473.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $480.39 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.66% and a net margin of 16.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. Analysts forecast that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.25 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.53%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 22nd. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.80%.

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.