Zions Shares Got Crushed: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Zions Bancorporation (NAS: ZION) fell 10% today after the company released disappointing earnings.

So what: Adjusted earnings per share came in $0.03 short of estimates at $0.30 per share, helped by the release of $1.5 billion in loan-loss reserves. Just for good measure, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded the company from buy to hold.

Now what: It's not surprising the stock dropped after a very disappointing earnings report. The company's net interest margin declined sequentially, something analysts at Jefferies & Co. expect to continue in coming quarters. I just can't see a good reason to jump on this drop today and would wait to see improvement in results before buying this stock.

Interested in more info on Zions Bancorporation? Add it to your watchlist byclicking here.

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Travis Hoium does not have a position in any company mentioned. You can follow Travis on Twitter at @FlushDrawFool, check out his personal stock holdings or follow his CAPS picks at TMFFlushDraw.Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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