Carter Bankshares reports Q3 EPS 16c, consensus 20c

Total assets were $4.5 billion at September 30, 2023 and $4.4 billion at June 30, 2023, increasing $68.2 million during the third quarter of 2023. The Company remained well capitalized as of September 30, 2023. The Company’s Tier 1 Capital ratio was 11.20% at September 30, 2023 compared to 11.46% at June 30, 2023. The Company’s leverage ratio was 9.70% at September 30, 2023 compared to 10.02% at June 30, 2023. The Company’s Total Risk-Based Capital ratio was 12.46% at September 30, 2023 compared to 12.72% at June 30, 2023. The Bank also remained well capitalized as of September 30, 2023. The Bank’s Tier 1 Capital ratio was 11.08% at September 30, 2023 compared to 11.34% at June 30, 2023. The Bank’s leverage ratio was 9.59% at September 30, 2023 compared to 9.76% at June 30, 2023. The Bank’s Total Risk-Based Capital ratio was 12.34% at September 30, 2023 compared to 12.60% at June 30, 2023. “We are obviously disappointed that our largest lending relationship remains in nonaccrual status and continues to have a negative impact on our financial results. However, aside from this issue, our financial performance for the quarter continued to be solid. We continue to feel positive about the structure of our balance sheet. Capital levels continue to be strong as does our liquidity position. In addition, we believe our bond portfolio is well positioned to outperform many of our peers in what appears to be a protracted period of higher interest rates. As with most of our peers, we are seeing continued pressure on funding costs. This trend will continue to impact our margin in the coming quarters. We do expect the net interest margin will return to a more normalized level once the large nonperforming loans are resolved. In terms of loans, we experienced another strong quarter with annualized growth of 9.6%. Lending pipelines are slowing somewhat, but we are still expecting modest loan growth in the near term. Other than the large NPL relationship, our asset quality remains strong across all credit metrics,” stated Litz H. Van Dyke, Chief Executive Officer. Van Dyke continued, “We remain confident in the condition and positioning of our Company. We are well prepared to navigate through any challenges that may emerge in our industry. Lastly, I want to reiterate that we continue to be focused on resolving our large NPL. We are committed to pursuing all remedies to resolve this matter in a manner that best protects the Company and its shareholders.”