As the Q3 earnings season comes to a close, it’s time to take stock of this quarter’s best and worst performers in the regional banks industry, including City Holding (NASDAQ: CHCO) and its peers.

Regional banks, financial institutions operating within specific geographic areas, serve as intermediaries between local depositors and borrowers. They benefit from rising interest rates that improve net interest margins (the difference between loan yields and deposit costs), digital transformation reducing operational expenses, and local economic growth driving loan demand. However, these banks face headwinds from fintech competition, deposit outflows to higher-yielding alternatives, credit deterioration (increasing loan defaults) during economic slowdowns, and regulatory compliance costs. Recent concerns about regional bank stability following high-profile failures and significant commercial real estate exposure present additional challenges.

The 94 regional banks stocks we track reported a satisfactory Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 1.3%.

Thankfully, share prices of the companies have been resilient as they are up 9.4% on average since the latest earnings results.

City Holding (NASDAQ: CHCO)

With roots dating back to 1957 and a strategic presence along the I-64 and I-81 corridors, City Holding (NASDAQGS:CHCO) operates as a financial holding company providing banking, trust, and investment services through its subsidiary City National Bank across West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, and Ohio.

City Holding reported revenues of $81.29 million, up 7.2% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.9%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter for the company with a solid beat of analysts’ tangible book value per share estimates and a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Interestingly, the stock is up 4.4% since reporting and currently trades at $125.69.

Is now the time to buy City Holding? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Best Q3: Customers Bancorp (NYSE: CUBI)

Originally founded with a "high-tech, high-touch" branch-light banking strategy, Customers Bancorp (NYSE: CUBI) is a bank holding company that provides commercial and consumer banking services through its Customers Bank subsidiary, with a focus on business lending and digital banking.

Customers Bancorp reported revenues of $231.8 million, up 38.3% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 6.9%. The business had a stunning quarter with an impressive beat of analysts’ net interest income estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 9.4% since reporting. It currently trades at $71.74.

Is now the time to buy Customers Bancorp? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Weakest Q3: The Bancorp (NASDAQ: TBBK)

Operating behind the scenes of many popular fintech apps and prepaid cards you might use daily, The Bancorp (NASDAQ: TBBK) is a bank holding company that specializes in providing banking services to fintech companies and offering specialty lending products.

The Bancorp reported revenues of $174.7 million, up 38.8% year on year, falling short of analysts’ expectations by 9.9%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ revenue estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ net interest income estimates.

The Bancorp delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. As expected, the stock is down 10.3% since the results and currently trades at $69.28.

Read our full analysis of The Bancorp’s results here.

Stellar Bancorp (NYSE: STEL)

Created through strategic mergers to serve the growing Texas business community, Stellar Bancorp (NYSE: STEL) is a Texas bank holding company that provides commercial banking services primarily to small and medium-sized businesses and professionals.

Stellar Bancorp reported revenues of $105.7 million, down 2% year on year. This result was in line with analysts’ expectations. Aside from that, it was a mixed quarter as it also recorded a solid beat of analysts’ tangible book value per share estimates but EPS in line with analysts’ estimates.

The stock is up 9.2% since reporting and currently trades at $32.17.

Read our full, actionable report on Stellar Bancorp here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Home Bancshares (NYSE: HOMB)

Founded in Conway, Arkansas in 1998 and growing through strategic acquisitions across the Southeast, Home Bancshares (NYSE: HOMB) operates as the bank holding company for Centennial Bank, providing commercial and retail banking services to businesses and individuals across multiple states.

Home Bancshares reported revenues of $275.5 million, up 6.3% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 1.6%. Taking a step back, it was a mixed quarter as it also logged an impressive beat of analysts’ tangible book value per share estimates but a narrow beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.

The stock is up 4.1% since reporting and currently trades at $28.59.

Read our full, actionable report on Home Bancshares here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Market Update

Thanks to the Fed’s rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has been on a steady path downward, easing back toward that 2% sweet spot. Fortunately (miraculously to some), all this tightening didn’t send the economy tumbling into a recession, so here we are, cautiously celebrating a soft landing. The cherry on top? Recent rate cuts (half a point in September 2024, a quarter in November) have propped up markets, especially after Trump’s November win lit a fire under major indices and sent them to all-time highs. However, there’s still plenty to ponder — tariffs, corporate tax cuts, and what 2025 might hold for the economy.

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