Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) Short Interest Update

Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,380,000 shares, a growth of 90.8% from the February 29th total of 2,820,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Columbia Banking System Trading Up 1.3 %

COLB stock traded up $0.25 during trading on Friday, hitting $19.35. The company had a trading volume of 2,832,372 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,914,226. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.73 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a 50 day moving average of $19.37 and a 200 day moving average of $21.36. Columbia Banking System has a fifty-two week low of $17.18 and a fifty-two week high of $28.11.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.35). Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 10.27% and a net margin of 12.71%. The company had revenue of $519.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $525.94 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.93 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 52.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Columbia Banking System will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 23rd were given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. Columbia Banking System’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 87.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Clint Stein acquired 9,500 shares of Columbia Banking System stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 30th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $20.96 per share, for a total transaction of $199,120.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 165,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,472,736.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Columbia Banking System news, VP Christopher Merrywell acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $21.09 per share, with a total value of $105,450.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 50,727 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,069,832.43. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Clint Stein acquired 9,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.96 per share, with a total value of $199,120.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 165,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,472,736.64. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 35,133 shares of company stock worth $719,737 in the last quarter. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Columbia Banking System

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Columbia Banking System by 1,506.8% in the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,326 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Financial bought a new stake in Columbia Banking System in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Columbia Banking System during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. 92.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. Wedbush reduced their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $30.00 to $25.00 in a report on Thursday, January 25th. TheStreet downgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $36.00 to $29.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.04.

About Columbia Banking System

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.