Aristotle Capital Boston LLC Sells 53,818 Shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Aristotle Capital Boston LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 8.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 583,669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 53,818 shares during the period. Aristotle Capital Boston LLC owned about 0.20% of Columbia Banking System worth $16,314,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Azora Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth $3,402,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 3,788,957 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $105,901,000 after purchasing an additional 725,357 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth $201,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth $7,157,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,343,000. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Columbia Banking System

In other news, CMO Devine David Moore sold 3,872 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was 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 owned 18,636 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $554,793.72. This represents a 17.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Price Performance

Shares of COLB opened at $30.05 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $8.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.97 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.05. 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 earnings results 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 business had revenue of $675.00 million during 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%.Columbia Banking System’s revenue for the quarter was up 37.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.67 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio is 58.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Columbia Banking System from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Columbia Banking System in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Columbia Banking System has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.