The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) share price has seen ups and downs in the last year, as the chart below shows. I think this is a good time to look at whether the ASX bank share is an attractive buy or not.
Despite recovering some of the early May decline, the bank is still (at the time of writing) approximately 10% lower than it was in April 2026.
I get excited when quality businesses fall because that means we can buy them at a lower price with a larger margin of safety. However, a decline doesn't necessarily mean it's great value.
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Is this a good time to buy the CBA share price?
It may be 10% cheaper, but its price/earnings (P/E) ratio is still worth contemplating.
According to the forecast on CMC Invest, the ASX bank share is projected to generate $6.48 of earnings per share (EPS) in FY26. That means it's trading at more than 25x FY26's estimated earnings.
Of course, the P/E ratio is one thing, but the other part of the equation is considering whether its earnings growth rate is strong enough to make that valuation appealing.
The latest information available to the market is the CBA FY26 third-quarter result. While I wouldn't base all expectations of the ASX bank share's future growth on one quarter, I think it's a good indicator of how the bank is performing and is the latest influence on the CBA share price.
Cash net profit after tax (NPAT) for the three months to 31 March 2026 came to approximately $2.7 billion. This was a rise of 4% year-over-year, though it was a reduction of 1% compared to the quarterly average of the first half of FY26.
It said that business lending grew 12.5% (1.2x as fast as the market), household deposits grew 9.1% (1.1x as fast as the market) and there was 7.1% growth of home lending (approximately the same speed as the market).
But, it also included a $316 million loan impairment expense with higher collective provisions, reflecting heightened geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty.
So, while the bank did see an impressive level of loan volume growth, borrowers also face more uncertainty because of the wider economic picture.
Conclusion on Commonwealth Bank
The investment professional community doesn't see value here with the CBA share price. According to Commsec, analysts are bearish on the ASX bank share valuation, with 14 sell ratings and just two hold ratings.
Combined with the clouded picture for banks following the Federal budget and the possible impacts on home loan demand, I think there are better opportunities out there on the ASX share market.
