3 Reasons COLB is Risky and 1 Stock to Buy Instead Anthony Lee Wed, October 14, 2026 at 8:44 AM EDT 3 min read COLB -0.98% ^GSPC -0.02% Trade COLB on Coinbase Trading disclosure Trading disclosure The above button links to Coinbase. Yahoo Finance is not a broker-dealer or investment adviser and does not offer securities or cryptocurrencies for sale or facilitate trading. Coinbase pays us for certain activity generated through this link. Prices displayed are informational.
Columbia Banking System currently trades at $28.31 per share and has shown little upside over the past six months, posting a small loss of 2.5%. The stock also fell short of the S&P 500's 12% gain during that period.
Is there a buying opportunity in Columbia Banking System, or does it present a risk to your portfolio? Dive into our full research report to see our analyst team's opinion, it's free.
We're sitting this one out for now. Here are three reasons why there are better opportunities than COLB, plus one stock we'd rather own.
We track the long-term change in earnings per share (EPS) because it highlights whether a company's growth is profitable.
Sadly for Columbia Banking System, its EPS declined by 4.4% annually over the last five years while its revenue grew by 34.5%. This tells us the company became less profitable on a per-share basis as it expanded.
We consider tangible book value per share (TBVPS) the most important metric to track for banks. TBVPS represents the real, liquid net worth per share of a bank, excluding intangible assets that have debatable value upon liquidation.
Disappointingly for investors, Columbia Banking System's TBVPS grew at a mediocre 8.7% annual clip over the last two years.
Tangible book value per share (TBVPS) growth is driven by a bank's ability to earn more than its cost of capital through lending activities while maintaining a strong balance sheet.
Over the next 12 months, Consensus estimates call for Columbia Banking System's TBVPS to grow by 6% to $20.38, a lousy growth rate.
Columbia Banking System isn't a terrible business, but it doesn't pass our quality test. With its shares underperforming the market lately, the stock trades at 1.1× forward P/B (or $28.31 per share). While this valuation is fair, the upside isn't great compared to the potential downside. We're pretty confident there are superior stocks to buy right now. We'd suggest looking at a safe-and-steady industrials business benefiting from an upgrade cycle.
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