Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) Declares $0.36 Quarterly Dividend

Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) announced a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, May 27th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of 0.36 per share by the financial services provider on Monday, June 16th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th.

Columbia Banking System has increased its dividend payment by an average of 8.1% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 4 years. Columbia Banking System has a dividend payout ratio of 47.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Columbia Banking System to earn $2.89 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.44 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 49.8%.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

COLB stock opened at $24.15 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $23.38 and its 200-day moving average is $26.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a PE ratio of 9.51 and a beta of 0.59. Columbia Banking System has a 1 year low of $18.11 and a 1 year high of $32.85.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on COLB. Raymond James set a $27.00 target price on Columbia Banking System and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Stephens decreased their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. DA Davidson set a $25.00 price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased 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 report on Thursday, April 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Columbia Banking System currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.64.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Columbia Banking System news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $116,461.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 104,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,725,545.31. This trade represents a 4.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Columbia Banking System by 194.6% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth increased its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 55.8% during the 1st 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. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 35.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 56,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,402,000 after purchasing an additional 14,824 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 23.7% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 82,719 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,063,000 after buying an additional 15,845 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Columbia Banking System by 572.7% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 484,730 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,089,000 after buying an additional 412,674 shares during the period. 92.53% of the stock is owned by 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.