FourThought Financial Partners LLC Buys Shares of 8,961 Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 8,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $242,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in COLB. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Columbia Banking System by 31.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,659,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $173,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,611,563 shares in the last quarter. Basswood Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,593,000. Holocene Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1,001.8% during the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 962,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,126,000 after buying an additional 874,986 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 33.1% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,263,432 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,099,000 after buying an additional 562,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 98.6% during the third quarter. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. now owns 944,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,657,000 after buying an additional 468,832 shares during the period. 92.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on COLB shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Columbia Banking System from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $33.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stephens lowered their price target on Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.38.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COLB opened at $26.53 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $27.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.44 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.99% and a return on equity of 11.21%. Analysts predict that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.43%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.69%.

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.