Head to Head

COLB vs CPAY: which is the better buy in 2026?

On Alexandria's Compass, Corpay, Inc. has the edge with a 91/100 score versus 90/100 for COLB. Here is how they stack up, factor by factor.

Columbia Banking System, Inc.

NASDAQ:COLB

90/100 Compass
True NorthAccumulate$9.2B

Pacific Northwest's quietest bank consolidator is trading at book value while integration synergies are about to land in the P&L.

Full COLB analysis

Corpay, Inc.

NYSE:CPAY

Edge
91/100 Compass
True NorthAccumulate$23.0B

B2B payments compounder trading at 11.5x forward earnings while growing 25% and printing $2.1B free cash, the market still treats it like a gas card company.

Full CPAY analysis

Factor by factor

FactorCOLBCPAY
Revenue Growth8365
Profitability4679
Valuation8267
Momentum8280
Theme Purity5568
Moat5553
Catalysts5775
Market Position5550

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Frequently asked questions

Is COLB or CPAY the better buy in 2026?

By Compass Score, Corpay, Inc. (NYSE:CPAY) edges it at 91/100 versus 90/100 for COLB. Both scores update weekly and reflect a contrarian, forward-looking read, not a recommendation.

How does Alexandria compare COLB and CPAY?

Each company is scored 1-100 on eight factors: revenue growth, profitability, valuation, momentum, theme purity, moat, catalysts, and market position. The Compass Score is the composite, and the comparison below shows where each name wins factor by factor.

Compass Scores are proprietary editorial research from publicly available data, not investment advice or a recommendation regarding any security. Rankings update weekly.