Jefferies Financial Group Begins Coverage on Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB)

Equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm set a “hold” rating and a $27.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 9.09% from the stock’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on COLB. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $27.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Raymond James set a $27.00 price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $30.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Columbia Banking System from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Eleven 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.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.64.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COLB opened at $24.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $23.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $26.58. Columbia Banking System has a 52-week low of $18.11 and a 52-week high of $32.85.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.21% and a net margin of 17.99%. The business had revenue of $481.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $482.86 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.65 EPS. Columbia Banking System’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Columbia Banking System will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In related news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $116,461.19. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 104,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,725,545.31. This represents a 4.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in COLB. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 55.8% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 12,621 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 4,520 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 887,267 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,128,000 after purchasing an additional 16,165 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the first quarter worth $1,150,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Columbia Banking System by 28.4% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 492,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,290,000 after buying an additional 108,994 shares during the period. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 15,995.1% in the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 162,882 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,062,000 after acquiring an additional 161,870 shares during the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Company 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.