Mach 1 Financial Group LLC Buys Shares of 19,740 Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Mach 1 Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 19,740 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $552,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 5,949 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $166,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 4.5% during the third quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 9,915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 122,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,422,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the period. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 4.9% during the third quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. now owns 9,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, Sittner & Nelson LLC increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 1.2% during the third quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 37,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $966,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the period. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Columbia Banking System Stock Performance

Shares of COLB stock opened at $29.62 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $28.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.65. The firm has a market cap of $8.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.80 and a beta of 0.63. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.91 and a 1 year high of $32.70.

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

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.96%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,241 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.25, for a total transaction of $63,308.25. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 100,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,838,249.25. This trade represents a 2.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 5,629 shares of company stock worth $158,044 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Stephens upped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays cut their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Columbia Banking System from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $32.13.

Columbia Banking System Company Profile

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.