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Columbia Banking (COLB) Could Be a Great Choice

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Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. But for income investors, generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments is your primary focus.

Cash flow can come from bond interest, interest from other types of investments, and of course, dividends. A dividend is the distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders; it's often viewed by its dividend yield, a metric that measures a dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.

Columbia Banking in Focus

Based in Tacoma, Columbia Banking (COLB - Free Report) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of -12.14%. The bank holding company is paying out a dividend of $0.36 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 6.14% compared to the Banks - West industry's yield of 3.01% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.61%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $1.44 is up 4.3% from last year. In the past five-year period, Columbia Banking has increased its dividend 2 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 6.36%. Looking ahead, future dividend growth will be dependent on earnings growth and payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, Columbia Banking's payout ratio is 56%, which means it paid out 56% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, COLB expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 is $2.55 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 0.39%.

Bottom Line

Investors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide a quarterly payout.

For instance, it's a rare occurrence when a tech start-up or big growth business offers their shareholders a dividend. It's more common to see larger companies with more established profits give out dividends. Income investors must be conscious of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, COLB is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold).


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