LSV Asset Management Sells 264,859 Shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

LSV Asset Management lowered its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 20.3% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,042,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 264,859 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $26,836,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. grew its position in Columbia Banking System by 4.9% during the third quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. now owns 9,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 26.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,718 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 571 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 53.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,790 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lecap Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 18,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $482,000 after purchasing an additional 639 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ COLB opened at $31.49 on Friday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12 month low of $19.61 and a 12 month high of $32.70. The stock has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a PE ratio of 13.93 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $29.31 and its 200 day moving average is $27.24.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.10. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.11% and a return on equity of 11.40%. The business had revenue of $715.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $693.23 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.71 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is currently 65.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on COLB shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Columbia Banking System to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Columbia Banking System news, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total value of $403,926.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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.