Columbia Banking System (COLB) Expected to Announce Quarterly Earnings on Thursday

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) is expected to be issuing its quarterly earnings data after the market closes on Thursday, April 24th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.63 per share and revenue of $482.86 million for the quarter. Investors interested in participating in the company's conference call can do so using this link.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.06. Columbia Banking System had a net margin of 17.99% and a return on equity of 11.21%. On average, analysts expect Columbia Banking System to post $3 EPS for the current fiscal year and $3 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ COLB traded up $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.18. 992,306 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,776,406. The stock has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.73 and a beta of 0.53. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $24.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.09. Columbia Banking System has a 12-month low of $17.61 and a 12-month high of $32.85.

Columbia Banking System Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.49%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Columbia Banking System's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on COLB shares. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $27.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Columbia Banking System from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stephens dropped their price objective on Columbia Banking System from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Columbia Banking System from $35.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total value of $116,461.19. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 104,869 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,725,545.31. The trade was a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

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.