Last week saw the newest third-quarter earnings release from Carter Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CARE), an important milestone in the company's journey to build a stronger business. Results look mixed - while revenue fell marginally short of analyst estimates at US$34m, statutory earnings beat expectations 7.5%, with Carter Bankshares reporting profits of US$0.24 per share. This is an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance in its report, look at what experts are forecasting for next year, and see if there has been any change to expectations for the business. We've gathered the most recent statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their earnings models, following these results.

See our latest analysis for Carter Bankshares

Taking into account the latest results, the most recent consensus for Carter Bankshares from three analysts is for revenues of US$160.0m in 2025. If met, it would imply a huge 25% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to bounce 468% to US$3.48. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$158.6m and earnings per share (EPS) of US$3.47 in 2025. The consensus analysts don't seem to have seen anything in these results that would have changed their view on the business, given there's been no major change to their estimates.

There were no changes to revenue or earnings estimates or the price target of US$21.67, suggesting that the company has met expectations in its recent result. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. There are some variant perceptions on Carter Bankshares, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$23.00 and the most bearish at US$21.00 per share. Even so, with a relatively close grouping of estimates, it looks like the analysts are quite confident in their valuations, suggesting Carter Bankshares is an easy business to forecast or the the analysts are all using similar assumptions.

These estimates are interesting, but it can be useful to paint some more broad strokes when seeing how forecasts compare, both to the Carter Bankshares' past performance and to peers in the same industry. The analysts are definitely expecting Carter Bankshares' growth to accelerate, with the forecast 19% annualised growth to the end of 2025 ranking favourably alongside historical growth of 3.9% per annum over the past five years. Compare this with other companies in the same industry, which are forecast to grow their revenue 6.7% annually. Factoring in the forecast acceleration in revenue, it's pretty clear that Carter Bankshares is expected to grow much faster than its industry.

The Bottom Line

The most obvious conclusion is that there's been no major change in the business' prospects in recent times, with the analysts holding their earnings forecasts steady, in line with previous estimates. Fortunately, they also reconfirmed their revenue numbers, suggesting that it's tracking in line with expectations. Additionally, our data suggests that revenue is expected to grow faster than the wider industry. The consensus price target held steady at US$21.67, with the latest estimates not enough to have an impact on their price targets.

Keeping that in mind, we still think that the longer term trajectory of the business is much more important for investors to consider. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for Carter Bankshares going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here..

You still need to take note of risks, for example - Carter Bankshares has 1 warning sign we think you should be aware of.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.