Three U.S. banks were downgraded by Raymond James on Thursday ahead of their earnings reports. Bank of America Corp. was downgraded to market perform from outperform, due to the negative expected impact from an accounting change, competition from mobile bankers and stricter regulations. Wells Fargo & Co. was also downgraded to market perform from outperform, and its 2016 and 2017 earnings per share estimates lowered. Umpqua Holdings Corp.’s [s:umpq] rating was lowered to outperform from strong buy, and its non-GAAP EPS was reduced for the next two years, but Raymond James said it remains bullish on the stock long term given its $2 billion acquisition of Sterling in 2013. Shares of Bank of America rose 0.6% to $12.94 in late-morning trade, though they remain down more than 22% over the last 12 months. Those of Wells Fargo rose 0.2% in recent trade, though they’re down nearly 17% from a year ago. Umpqua’s stock increased 0.9% to $15.42, but remains down 13% on the year.
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