Virtu Financial LLC Invests $474,000 in Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Columbia Banking System, Inc. (NASDAQ:COLB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 17,568 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $474,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Columbia Banking System by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,315,896 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $197,602,000 after acquiring an additional 206,643 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 31.9% during the third 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 during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 562,467 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Columbia Banking System by 10.7% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,787,006 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,267,000 after purchasing an additional 172,066 shares during the period. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Columbia Banking System by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,774,443 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $47,928,000 after purchasing an additional 42,527 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.53% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on COLB shares. UBS Group started coverage on Columbia Banking System in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $32.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens cut their price target on shares of 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Columbia Banking System from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $33.00 to $35.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Columbia Banking System from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.25.

Columbia Banking System Trading Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ COLB traded down $0.59 during trading on Friday, reaching $24.73. 1,149,855 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,781,492. Columbia Banking System, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.08 and a fifty-two week high of $32.85. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $26.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a PE ratio of 9.74 and a beta of 0.62.

Columbia Banking System (NASDAQ:COLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Columbia Banking System, Inc. will post 2.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Columbia Banking System Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.82%. Columbia Banking System's payout ratio is presently 56.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Torran B. Nixon sold 4,481 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.99, for a total transaction of $116,461.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 104,869 shares in the company, valued at $2,725,545.31. This represents a 4.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

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.