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Community Bank System
(NYSE:CBU)
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Rating:72Outperform
Price Target:
$72.00
â–²(7.08% Upside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:08/08/26
CBU scores well primarily on solid and improving financial performance (healthy margins, rising earnings, and improved leverage) and a constructive earnings update with reiterated guidance and continued NII/NIM momentum. The score is moderated by weaker near-term technical momentum (negative MACD and trading below shorter moving averages), while valuation and dividend support the mid-to-high overall rating.
Positive Factors
Net interest income & margin expansion
Sustained NII growth and sequential margin expansion (eighth consecutive quarter of NII growth) indicate durable core earnings strength. Lower funding costs and higher loan volumes support structural net interest income expansion, improving cash generation and resilience of banking earnings over the medium term.
Negative Factors
Rising operating expenses from expansion
Sustained branch openings, higher staffing and acquisition-related costs are increasing the structural expense base. If revenue synergies from new branches and deals lag, persistent expense growth can pressure operating margins and require stronger execution to justify the longer-term strategic footprint.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Net interest income & margin expansion
Sustained NII growth and sequential margin expansion (eighth consecutive quarter of NII growth) indicate durable core earnings strength. Lower funding costs and higher loan volumes support structural net interest income expansion, improving cash generation and resilience of banking earnings over the medium term.
Read all positive factors
Community Bank System (CBU) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$3.46B
Dividend Yield2.86%
Average Volume (3M)234.13K
Price to Earnings (P/E)15.3
Beta (1Y)0.83
Revenue Growth7.22%
EPS Growth17.31%
CountryUS
Employees2,927
SectorFinancial
Sector Strength70
IndustryBanks - Regional
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)4.31
Shares Outstanding52,615,906
10 Day Avg. Volume292,282
30 Day Avg. Volume234,131
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.92
Price to Book (P/B)1.51
Price to Sales (P/S)2.99
P/FCF Ratio12.97
Enterprise Value/Market Cap<0.01
Enterprise Value/Revenue<0.01
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit<0.01
Enterprise Value/Ebitda<0.01
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$71.00Price Target Upside5.59% Upside
Rating ConsensusHold
Number of Analyst Covering4
EPS Forecast (FY)4.68
Revenue Forecast (FY)$896.96M
Community Bank System Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Community Bank System, Inc. (CBU) serves as the parent company for Community Bank, N.A., providing a broad array of banking and financial services to a diverse clientele including individual consumers, businesses, and local government entities. It...
How the Company Makes Money
CBU primarily makes money through (1) net interest income from its banking operations and (2) noninterest income from fees and financial services subsidiaries.
1) Net interest income (core banking): The largest driver of earnings for a community ...
Community Bank System Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Jul 28, 2026
(Q2-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Oct 27, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call presented strong operating momentum: record results, continued net interest income expansion, improving NIM, double-digit segment earnings growth (notably wealth management), meaningful loan and deposit growth year-over-year, and a healthy M&A pipeline. Key concerns centered on insurance underperformance driven by lower contingent fees and softer premiums, modest near-term margin pressure driven by seasonal funding needs, and higher noninterest expenses (including some one-time charges and acquisition-related increases). Management provided constructive guidance for full-year 2026 and highlighted optionality from securities cash flows and a strong insurance M&A pipeline that could bolster future revenue. Overall, positives (broad-based revenue and earnings growth, diversification, balance sheet liquidity, and strategic pipeline) outweigh the headwinds, which are notable but manageable.Positive Updates
Record Quarter and EPS Growth
GAAP EPS $1.16, up $0.19 or 19.6% year-over-year and up $0.08 or 7.4% sequentially. Operating EPS $1.16 (record), up from $1.04 year-over-year. Record operating pretax pre-provision earnings growth of ~14.9% year-over-year.
Negative Updates
Insurance Underperformance
Insurance pretax earnings down 10.8% year-over-year; year-to-date insurance revenue down ~6.5%. Shortfall driven by meaningfully lower contingent fees (~$1 million year-to-date shortfall on contingencies) and softer premium markets, with organic softness in insurance revenue.
Read all updates
Q2-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Record Quarter and EPS Growth
GAAP EPS $1.16, up $0.19 or 19.6% year-over-year and up $0.08 or 7.4% sequentially. Operating EPS $1.16 (record), up from $1.04 year-over-year. Record operating pretax pre-provision earnings growth of ~14.9% year-over-year.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Management provided full‑year 2026 guidance calling for loan growth of 5–6% and deposit growth of 3–4%, net interest income growth of 10–11% (Q2 NII was $139.1M with a FTE NIM of 3.49%), operating noninterest revenue growth of 6–7% (Q2 operating noninterest revenue rose 6.4% YoY), a provision for credit losses of $20–25M (Q2 provision was $4.6M), continued NIM expansion with an expected 2026 exit in the low‑to‑mid 3.5% range (Q3 may see a temporary swing of +1 to −2 bps), core noninterest expenses of $550–$555M (up 7–8% YoY and including roughly $8–9M of incremental Santander branch costs and $4–5M of ClearPoint costs), an effective tax rate of 23–24%, and management highlighted strong liquidity (over $1B of securities cash flows expected over the next 18 months) plus de‑novo deposit progress of $140M at quarter end toward about $700M of new funding this year.Community Bank System Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
78
Positive
Balance Sheet
74
Positive
Cash Flow
71
Positive
| Breakdown | TTM | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 1.05B | 1.01B | 940.71M | 755.98M | 702.45M | 633.65M |
| Gross Profit | 838.44M | 796.94M | 723.53M | 640.67M | 664.58M | 629.49M |
| EBITDA | 336.59M | 305.60M | 265.36M | 196.58M | 270.74M | 271.51M |
| Net Income | 228.06M | 210.46M | 182.48M | 131.92M | 188.08M | 189.69M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 17.76B | 17.41B | 16.39B | 15.56B | 15.84B | 15.55B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 4.78B | 301.75M | 508.96M | 3.11B | 4.36B | 6.81B |
| Total Debt | 764.00M | 746.66M | 998.87M | 765.20M | 1.14B | 329.88M |
| Total Liabilities | 15.69B | 15.41B | 14.62B | 13.86B | 14.28B | 13.45B |
| Stockholders Equity | 2.07B | 2.01B | 1.76B | 1.70B | 1.55B | 2.10B |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 231.26M | 233.33M | 221.57M | 209.84M | 201.68M | 189.17M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 308.27M | 301.86M | 242.28M | 228.42M | 214.60M | 202.55M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -380.57M | -182.10M | -835.62M | 335.78M | -2.14B | -1.53B |
| Financing Cash Flow | 93.22M | -15.01M | 599.38M | -583.13M | 259.22M | 1.56B |
Community Bank System Technical Analysis
Positive
67.24
Price Trends
65.89
Negative
63.73
Positive
61.27
Positive
Market Momentum
-0.29
Positive
50.08
Neutral
46.65
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CBU, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 67.24 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 65.88, above the 50-day MA of 65.89, and above the 200-day MA of 61.27, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.29 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 50.08 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 46.65 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for CBU.
Community Bank System Risk Analysis
Community Bank System disclosed 36 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Community Bank System reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Community Bank System Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (68)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
79 Outperform | $4.17B | 13.70 | 11.74% | 0.89% | -0.33% | 30.90% | |
77 Outperform | $4.10B | 12.16 | 8.72% | 3.66% | 31.11% | 107.51% | |
72 Outperform | $3.46B | 15.28 | 11.34% | 2.80% | 7.22% | 17.31% | |
69 Neutral | $3.39B | 11.92 | 10.27% | 3.70% | 1.51% | 19.06% | |
68 Neutral | $18.00B | 11.42 | 9.92% | 3.81% | 9.73% | 1.22% | |
66 Neutral | $3.46B | -8.03 | -10.21% | 3.69% | -56.95% | -299.43% | |
64 Neutral | $3.49B | 10.56 | 11.66% | 4.88% | 34.95% | 54.57% |
* Financial Sector Average
CBU
Community Bank System
65.84
10.45
18.86%
SFNC
Simmons 1st Nat'l
24.08
4.95
25.90%
TOWN
TowneBank
37.82
2.76
7.88%
WSBC
WesBanco
42.69
12.82
42.91%
WSFS
Wsfs Financial
81.66
26.97
49.32%
FHB
First Hawaiian
27.66
3.84
16.14%
Community Bank System Corporate Events
Business Operations and StrategyM&A Transactions
Community Bank System Expands Wealth Services With ClearPoint Deal
Positive
Jun 1, 2026
On June 1, 2026, Community Financial System, Inc. said its subsidiary Community Bank, N.A. completed the all-cash, $39 million acquisition of ClearPoint Federal Bank Trust, a national leader in trust administration for the roughly $20 billion dea...
Executive/Board ChangesShareholder Meetings
Community Bank System Shareholders Reaffirm Governance and Leadership
Positive
May 22, 2026
At its virtual annual shareholders meeting held on May 20, 2026, Community Financial System, Inc. shareholders elected 12 directors to one-year terms and reaffirmed the company’s governance structure. Investors also expressed support for man...
Business Operations and Strategy
Community Bank System Releases New Investor Presentation Online
Neutral
May 13, 2026
On May 13, 2026, Community Financial System, Inc. announced that it had posted a new investor presentation to its website for use in upcoming meetings with investors and analysts. The availability of this presentation signals the company’s o...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.