SouthState Corporation Just Beat EPS By 21%: Here's What Analysts Think Will Happen Next

SouthState Corporation (NYSE:SSB) just released its first-quarter report and things are looking bullish. It was overall a positive result, with revenues beating expectations by 3.0% to hit US$631m. SouthState also reported a statutory profit of US$0.87, which was an impressive 21% above what the analysts had forecast. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. We thought readers would find it interesting to see the analysts latest (statutory) post-earnings forecasts for next year.

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Taking into account the latest results, the current consensus from SouthState's nine analysts is for revenues of US$2.51b in 2025. This would reflect a substantial 37% increase on its revenue over the past 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are predicted to shoot up 28% to US$6.42. Yet prior to the latest earnings, the analysts had been anticipated revenues of US$2.56b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$6.55 in 2025. So it looks like the analysts have become a bit less optimistic after the latest results announcement, with revenues expected to fall even as the company is supposed to maintain EPS.

View our latest analysis for SouthState

The average price target was steady at US$116even though revenue estimates declined; likely suggesting the analysts place a higher value on earnings. It could also be instructive to look at the range of analyst estimates, to evaluate how different the outlier opinions are from the mean. Currently, the most bullish analyst values SouthState at US$130 per share, while the most bearish prices it at US$95.00. Analysts definitely have varying views on the business, but the spread of estimates is not wide enough in our view to suggest that extreme outcomes could await SouthState shareholders.

Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. The analysts are definitely expecting SouthState's growth to accelerate, with the forecast 52% annualised growth to the end of 2025 ranking favourably alongside historical growth of 15% per annum over the past five years. By contrast, our data suggests that other companies (with analyst coverage) in a similar industry are forecast to grow their revenue at 7.1% per year. It seems obvious that, while the growth outlook is brighter than the recent past, the analysts also expect SouthState to grow faster than the wider 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. Regrettably, they also downgraded their revenue estimates, but the latest forecasts still imply the business will grow faster than the wider industry. Even so, earnings per share are more important to the intrinsic value of the business. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.

With that in mind, we wouldn't be too quick to come to a conclusion on SouthState. Long-term earnings power is much more important than next year's profits. At Simply Wall St, we have a full range of analyst estimates for SouthState going out to 2027, and you can see them free on our platform here..

And what about risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for SouthState (of which 1 can't be ignored!) you should know about.

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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.