Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) Reaches New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Carter Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ:CARE) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $23.71 and last traded at $23.60, with a volume of 288400 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.40.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on CARE shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Carter Bankshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Carter Bankshares to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 25th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Carter Bankshares from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Carter Bankshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $22.00.

Carter Bankshares Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $21.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $532.16 million, a PE ratio of 17.40 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Carter Bankshares (NASDAQ:CARE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.08. Carter Bankshares had a net margin of 12.32% and a return on equity of 7.64%. The firm had revenue of $39.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.66 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Carter Bankshares, Inc. will post 1.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Carter Bankshares

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CARE. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Carter Bankshares by 88.1% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 25,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 11,794 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Carter Bankshares by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 90,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,468,000 after purchasing an additional 6,157 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Carter Bankshares in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $585,000. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Carter Bankshares in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $330,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Carter Bankshares by 33.4% in the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 32,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $556,000 after purchasing an additional 8,030 shares during the last quarter. 41.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Carter Bankshares Company Profile

Carter Bankshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Suffolk, Virginia, operating primarily through its subsidiary, Carter Bank & Trust. The company offers a full range of commercial and retail banking services, serving individuals, small and mid-sized businesses, and nonprofit organizations. Its financial products are designed to meet the needs of local customers across southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina.

Carter Bank & Trust provides deposit accounts, including checking, savings and money market products, as well as certificates of deposit.