Leeward Investments LLC MA Reduces Position in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Leeward Investments LLC MA lessened its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 2.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 880,432 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 24,277 shares during the quarter. Columbia Banking System comprises approximately 1.2% of Leeward Investments LLC MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Leeward Investments LLC MA owned 0.30% of Columbia Banking System worth $24,150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 156.5% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 66,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,830,000 after buying an additional 40,708 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in Columbia Banking System in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,807,000. CWC Advisors LLC. grew its stake in Columbia Banking System by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. CWC Advisors LLC. now owns 23,490 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 1,607 shares in the last quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the 1st quarter valued at $276,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 37.9% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 47,467 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,329,000 after acquiring an additional 13,053 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COLB opened at $31.27 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.46 and a beta of 0.63. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 52-week low of $22.77 and a 52-week high of $32.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $29.69 and a 200 day moving average of $29.13.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $675.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $677.34 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 19.28%.The company’s revenue was up 37.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.67 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on COLB. Barclays cut their price target on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Columbia Banking System from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Columbia Banking System news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.77, for a total transaction of $115,269.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 18,636 shares in the company, valued at $554,793.72. The trade was a 17.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Columbia Banking System

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.