As we find ourselves heading into yet another action-packed week of earnings reports, I wanted to take a closer look at the upcoming earnings-based performance of two names in the regional banking sector and share my thoughts on what needs to happen in order for each of these firms to meet and/or surpass analysts' expectations.

#1 Zions Bancorp (ZION)

Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, Zions Bancorp, is a financial holding company which provides banking and related services to its clients and customers. It offers community banking services (including small and medium-sized business and corporate banking solutions), lending services (that encompass commercial, residential, development-based, construction and variable term lending solutions), retail banking services, cash management products and services, residential mortgages, trust and wealth management services, and investment services.

On Thursday, shares of ZION, which currently possess a market cap of $5.27 billion, a forward P/E ratio of 14.98, and a dividend yield of 0.56% ($0.16), settled at a price of $28.52/share. Based on a closing price of $28.52/share, shares of ZION are trading 3.76% below their 20-day simple moving average, 2.38% below their 50-day simple moving average, and 3.13% below their 200-day simple moving average. These numbers indicate a short-term and mid-to-long term downtrend for the stock, which wold generally translate into a selling mode for most near-term traders and many long-term investors. However, I actually this may be the time to establish a position in the company given the fact that a solid earnings-related performance could turn the stocks trend behavior right around.

Speaking of the company's upcoming Q2 earnings, there are a number of things potential investors should consider. For example, analysts are currently calling for ZION to earn $0.45/share in terms of EPS (which is $0.04/share higher than what the company had reported during Q1 2014, and $0.03/share lower than what the company had reported during the year-ago period) when its latest earnings are released on July 21.

In order to meet and/or exceed its quarterly EPS estimates, there are a number of factors in which I'd like to see a solid improvement versus its Q1 performance. With that said, I'd like to see a 2%-to-4% increase in the company's Q2 net interest income (as compared to Q1's net interest income of $416 million), a 1.5%-to-2.25% increase in its non-interest income(as compared to Q1's net interest income of $138 million), a 3%-to-6% increase in the total value of its loans and leases held for investment (as compared to Q1's loans and leases held for investment which totaled $39.2 billion), and lastly, a 1.5%-to-2.5% increase in the company's net income (as compared to Q1's net income of $101.2 million).

#2 Glacier Bancorp (GBCI)

Headquartered in Kalispell, Montana, Glacier Bancorp, Inc. is a regional bank holding company providing commercial banking services in 72 communities through 110 banking offices in Montana, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. The company offers a wide range of banking products and services, including transaction and savings deposits, commercial, consumer, and real estate loans, mortgage origination services, and retail brokerage services.

On Thursday, shares of GBCI, which currently possess a market cap of $1.99 billion, a forward P/E ratio of 15.52, and a dividend yield of 2.39% ($0.64), settled at a price of $26.76/share. Based on a closing price of $26.76/share, shares of GBCI are trading 4.60% below their 20-day simple moving average, 0.87% below their 50-day simple moving average, and 2.33% below their 200-day simple moving average. These numbers indicate a short-term and mid-to-long term downtrend for the stock, which wold generally translate into a selling mode for most near-term traders and many long-term investors. However, I actually this may be the time to establish a position in the company given the fact that a solid earnings-related performance could turn the stocks trend behavior right around.

Looking ahead to the company's upcoming Q2 earnings, there are a number of things potential investors should consider. For example, analysts are currently calling for GBCI to earn $0.39/share in terms of EPS (which is $0.03/share higher than what the company had reported during Q1 2014, and $0.08/share higher than what the company had reported during the year-ago period) when its latest earnings are released on July 21.

In order to meet and/or exceed its quarterly EPS estimates, I'd like to see a solid improvement versus its Q1 performance. With that said, I'd like to see a 4%-to-7% increase in the company's Q2 net income (as compared to Q1's net income of $26.7 million), a 1.5%-to-2.25% increase in the value of its loan portfolio (as compared to Q1's increase of $25.8 million), a 3%-to-6% increase in the total value of its cash and cash equivalents (as compared to Q1's cash and cash equivalents which totaled $161.6 million), and lastly, a 1.5%-to-2.5% decrease in the company's non-performing assets (as compared to Q1's decrease in non-performing assets of $2.6 million).

Conclusion

For those of you who may be considering an investment in either of these regional banks, I'd strongly consider establishing a position prior to their upcoming earnings as their results could very well outperform street expectations. When it comes to Zions Bancorp, steady increases in its net interest income, its non-interest income, and the total value of its loans and leases held for investment could help drive the company's Q2 earnings higher. When it comes to Glacier Bancorp, solid increases in the value of its loan portfolio, its net income, and a decrease in the total value of its non-performing assets could help drive the company's Q2 earnings to new heights.