Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC Boosts Stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC lifted its position in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 42.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,724 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $1,716,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its stake in Columbia Banking System by 4.5% in the third quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 9,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. grew its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. now owns 9,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $252,000 after buying an additional 457 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 534 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 acquiring an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lecap Asset Management Ltd. lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 18,713 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $482,000 after acquiring an additional 639 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ COLB opened at $31.49 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.93 and a beta of 0.61. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a twelve month low of $19.61 and a twelve month high of $32.70. The company has a 50 day moving average of $29.37 and a 200 day moving average of $27.34.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.10. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 17.11%.The business had revenue of $715.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $693.23 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.71 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Columbia Banking System news, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total transaction of $403,926.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on COLB shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Columbia Banking System to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.88.

Columbia Banking System Company 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.