Mirabella Financial Services LLP Buys New Holdings in Columbia Banking System, Inc. $COLB

Mirabella Financial Services LLP purchased a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 105,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,723,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 39.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 664,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,094,000 after purchasing an additional 187,551 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Columbia Banking System by 145.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 7,019,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $180,671,000 after purchasing an additional 4,157,835 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in Columbia Banking System by 45.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 278,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,179,000 after purchasing an additional 87,627 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 7,536,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $193,977,000 after buying an additional 929,862 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Columbia Banking System by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,495,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $192,941,000 after buying an additional 1,497,177 shares during the last quarter. 92.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Columbia Banking System

In related news, Director Steven R. Gardner sold 13,725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.43, for a total value of $403,926.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 2,240 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.85, for a total transaction of $64,624.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 98,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,833,906.65. The trade was a 2.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 19,354 shares of company stock worth $561,971 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on COLB. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $33.00 target price on shares of Columbia Banking System in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Columbia Banking System from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $30.00 to $32.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.04.

Columbia Banking System Stock Down 1.0%

COLB opened at $26.20 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $7.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a 50 day moving average of $29.33 and a 200-day moving average of $27.81. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.61 and a 52 week high of $32.70.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $715.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $693.23 million. Columbia Banking System had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 17.11%.During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.71 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. Columbia Banking System’s payout ratio is 65.49%.

About Columbia Banking System

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.