Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE) AI Stock Analysis

Carter Bankshares, Inc., founded in 1974 and headquartered in Martinsville, Virginia, serves as the bank holding company for Carter Bank & Trust. The company provides a range of deposit products, including checking, savings, retirement accounts, money market accounts, and certificates of deposit. Its loan offerings feature secured and unsecured commercial loans, consumer loans for automobiles, education, and home improvements, alongside residential mortgages, real estate construction and acquisition loans, and home equity lines of credit. It also offers credit cards, treasury and corporate cash management, safe deposit boxes, direct deposit, and digital banking tools including mobile banking and e-statements.

Annual revenue rose from $156.4M in FY2021 to $254.6M in FY2025, delivering a 5-year revenue CAGR of 9.2%. Net income fluctuated over this span, rising to $50.1M in FY2022 before settling at $23.4M in FY2023, $24.5M in FY2024, and $31.4M in FY2025. Gross margin was 61.7% in FY2025 compared with 84.1% in FY2021, while operating margin concluded FY2025 at 15.7%. Momentum accelerated in the quarter ended June 30, 2026, as quarterly revenue increased 68.3% year-over-year and quarterly earnings surged 253.9% year-over-year, supporting trailing twelve-month EPS of $5.80.

As of June 30, 2026, Carter Bankshares held $681.4M in cash and short-term investments, total assets of $4.80B, and shareholders' equity of $539.1M, with a current ratio of 0.01. During FY2025, operating cash flow reached $39.9M and free cash flow was $31.8M. Capital expenditures totaled $8.1M in FY2025. The company deployed $20.0M into share buybacks during FY2025, bringing its 5-year share count change to -17.1%.

Trading at $30.21, Carter Bankshares has a market capitalization of $699.8M and an enterprise value of $461.5M. The stock trades at a trailing P/E of 5.2x, lower than the median of 12.1x for its US-listed Financial Services peers, though its forward P/E of 13.7x is above the peer median of 10.8x. Its price-to-sales multiple is 2.4x versus 3.2x for peers. Over the trailing 1-year period, the stock returned 66.2% versus 16.8% for the S&P 500 (SPY), and its 5-year return reached 107.6% compared to 83.0% for the index.

Carter Bankshares pays an annual forward dividend of $0.40 per share, representing a dividend yield of 1.32% on a quarterly distribution schedule. The dividend is supported by a payout ratio of 12.5%, and the most recent ex-dividend date occurred on August 10, 2026.

Consensus analyst coverage consists of 1 Strong Buy and 3 Hold ratings. The mean price target is $35.08, representing a 16.1% upside compared to the last close of $30.21. For the current fiscal year ending December 31, 2026, analysts estimate EPS of $5.76 on revenue of $259.5M. For the following fiscal year, 4 analysts forecast EPS to fall 54.9% to $2.60 and revenue to decline 21.3% to $204.1M. Carter Bankshares has surpassed EPS estimates in 2 of the past 4 quarters, and its next earnings date is October 22, 2026.

This page is an AI-written research summary of Carter Bankshares, Inc. (CARE). The text was generated on October 30, 2026 from Quotelinks data as of October 16, 2026 (company profile, annual results, latest balance sheet, valuation, price performance and analyst estimates). An automatic check rejects any draft that contains a figure not found in that data. It is not investment advice; verify figures on the linked tabs before making decisions.

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