Kestra Investment Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

Kestra Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 17.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 33,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,885 shares during the quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $908,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 171.3% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 2,127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 1,343 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1,507.6% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 4,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 4,553 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 14.0% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 709 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 6,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $176,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System in the third quarter worth approximately $208,000. 92.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COLB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $33.00 to $35.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.38.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

COLB opened at $27.83 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.24. The firm has a market cap of $5.83 billion, a PE ratio of 10.96 and a beta of 0.66. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 1 year low of $17.08 and a 1 year high of $32.85.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.06. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.21% and a net margin of 17.99%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.72 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is currently 56.69%.

Columbia Banking System Profile

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.