Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Buys 206,643 Shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,315,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 206,643 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Columbia Banking System were worth $197,602,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of COLB. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 31.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,659,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $173,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,611,563 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Columbia Banking System by 33.1% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,263,432 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,099,000 after buying an additional 562,467 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Columbia Banking System by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,787,006 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,267,000 after buying an additional 172,066 shares in the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC increased its stake in Columbia Banking System by 14.2% in the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 1,534,798 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,074,000 after acquiring an additional 190,311 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Columbia Banking System by 29.5% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,164,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,413,000 after acquiring an additional 265,681 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.53% of the company’s stock.

Columbia Banking System Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COLB opened at $24.97 on Friday. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.08 and a 12-month high of $32.85. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $27.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.83 and a beta of 0.62.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.06. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.21% and a net margin of 17.99%. As a group, research analysts predict that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is 56.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on COLB. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Columbia Banking System from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $33.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $32.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Columbia Banking System from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.38.

Insider Activity at Columbia Banking System

In other Columbia Banking System news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total value of $116,461.19. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 104,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,725,545.31. The trade was a 4.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.