Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV): Business Model Canvas [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're looking for the real mechanics behind Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV), and after two decades analyzing complex balance sheets, I can tell you this isn't just about selling caskets; it's a highly structured, decentralized model. We're mapping out how they run 187 funeral and cemetery properties while targeting $40 million to $50 million in Adjusted Free Cash Flow for 2025, all while managing debt leverage near 4.1x. Honestly, the real story is the tension between their bedrock 70% At-Need Funeral Service Revenue and the explosive 21.4% YoY growth in Pre-Need Cemetery Sales they saw in Q3 2025. Dive into the nine blocks below to see exactly how their Key Partnerships and Key Activities drive this unique value proposition in the deathcare space.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Key Partnerships

You're looking at the external relationships Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) relies on to execute its strategy, especially in the high-margin pre-need space. These aren't just vendor relationships; they are core to their financial performance as of late 2025.

National Guardian Life Insurance Company for pre-need funding

Carriage Services, Inc. maintains a landmark national agreement with National Guardian Life Insurance Company (NGL) to deliver exceptional pre-arranged funeral services. This partnership is actively being leveraged in 2025 to increase preneed sales. Management confirmed in the Q3 2025 call that they work 'hand-in-hand' with NGL to boost these sales.

Precoa for technology and pre-need sales program support

The collaboration with Precoa is focused on innovation to drive sales volume. Precoa is rolling out new technological tools, including a new CRM and AI tools, designed to accelerate lead generation and improve the ability to close on more deals. This technological push directly supports the growth in insurance-funded prearranged funeral sales.

Express Funeral Funding to streamline insurance assignments

Carriage Services, Inc. announced an expanded national partnership with Express Funeral Funding (EFF) in March 2025. This collaboration is specifically designed to streamline at-need insurance assignment funding. Carriage Services leverages EFF's technology and systems to offer what they term the best possible insurance assignment program to families.

The financial impact of these insurance and pre-need focused partnerships is clear in the reported revenue figures:

The growth in General Agency Commission Revenue accounted for 50.5% of the year-over-year growth in total financial revenue for the third quarter of 2025. That's a significant driver for the business. It's a good sign when the financing side is accelerating like that.

Local suppliers for caskets, urns, and cemetery merchandise

Carriage Services, Inc. is working to reduce complexity and drive cost efficiency in procurement through its internal initiatives, which impacts supplier relationships. The company successfully launched a new earned core line to improve procurement and is planning future phases to focus on categories like casket core lines. This suggests a strategic consolidation or standardization of local supplier relationships to gain better terms and efficiency.

• Project Trinity implementation is focused on back-office systems, with Phase 2 expected in Q3 2025.
• The new earned core line is designed to enhance offerings while improving procurement margins.

Strategic acquisition targets for growth in new markets

Carriage Services, Inc. has signaled a return to its acquisition-heavy growth strategy in 2025. The company is under contract to acquire new businesses, with closings scheduled for later in the third quarter of 2025. This is how you see the company planning for future scale.

Here's the quick math on the expected immediate impact from the contracted deals:

• Acquisitions are expected to serve over 2,600 families annually.
• The acquired businesses generated more than $15 million in revenue in the prior year.
• Carriage Services, Inc. expects 10%+ cemetery growth in 2025, driven by these strategic acquisitions.

What this estimate hides is the multiple paid; analysts suggest that for a premium business in a competitive landscape, high single digits on the multiples is a fair estimate for these transactions. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday to ensure liquidity for Q4 acquisition closings.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Key Activities

You're focused on the engine room of Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV)-the day-to-day actions that turn strategy into results. This isn't about the promises; it's about the execution, and the numbers from the third quarter of 2025 tell a clear story of portfolio management and focused growth.

The core activity remains managing and expanding its physical footprint across the US. This requires constant oversight of service quality and local market dynamics.

Executing disciplined, strategic acquisitions and divestitures is central to portfolio high-grading. Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) actively reshapes its asset base to align with its long-term vision.

In the third quarter of 2025, this activity was in full swing:

• Divested non-core assets consisting of seven funeral homes and one cemetery.
• Completed the strategic acquisition of two businesses that generated over $15 million in revenue last year.
• Net cash outflow for acquisitions, divestitures, and capital expenditures for the quarter totaled $44.7 million.

Driving pre-need sales growth, especially in cemetery property, is a major focus area, evidenced by strong financial revenue results. The company is pushing its national prearranged funeral and cemetery strategy hard.

Here's the quick math on pre-need performance for the third quarter of 2025:

• Cemetery pre-need sales grew 21.4% year-over-year.
• Financial revenue, largely from pre-need insurance contracts, increased 27.2% year-over-year.
• Preneed insurance contracts sold grew by 27.9% year-over-year.
• Consolidated average price per preneed interment right sold increased 16.7% for the quarter.

Still, the funeral segment saw some headwinds; funeral contract volume declined 5.5% year-over-year in Q3, though the average revenue per contract saw a 2.0% increase.

Implementing Project Trinity for back-office and IT system efficiency is a key internal activity aimed at long-term margin improvement. This is a multi-phase effort to modernize systems.

Project Trinity milestones as of late 2025:

• Phase 1 implementation was underway.
• Phase 2 was scheduled to commence in Q3 2025.
• Testing of contract and tracking functionalities was underway in Q3 2025.
• The company spent $1.9 million on Project Trinity in the first quarter of 2025.

Managing capital allocation and debt reduction remains a critical activity, directly impacting the company's financial flexibility and cost of capital. The goal is to bring the leverage ratio down toward the long-term target range.

The 2025 guidance projected the leverage ratio to end the year between 4.0x and 4.1x. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Key Resources

You're looking at the bedrock of Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV)'s operation-the tangible and intangible assets that make their business model work, especially as we move through late 2025. Honestly, in this industry, the physical footprint and the quality of the local teams are everything.

Extensive Network of Properties and Financial Projections

The physical scale of Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) is a major resource, providing a broad base for revenue generation across the United States. As of June 30, 2025, the company managed a network that totaled 187 properties, split between funeral homes and cemeteries. This physical presence, spread across multiple states, is a significant barrier to entry for competitors trying to build local heritage.

To give you a clearer picture of the scale and the financial expectations tied to these assets for the full year 2025, here's the breakdown:

That projected Adjusted Free Cash Flow range of $40 million to $50 million for 2025 shows the expected cash generation power of this asset base, even with planned divestitures factored in. The Q3 2025 outlook tightened that to $44 million to $48 million, which would mark record highs for the company's history.

Decentralized Management Philosophy and Personnel

The operational blueprint for Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) is its Standards Operating Model, which is fundamentally a decentralized and entrepreneurial approach. This model is a key intangible asset because it supports the high-value, personal service nature of the business.

The philosophy translates into specific actions regarding their people:

• Emphasizes decentralized management of local businesses.
• Focuses on finding, developing, and retaining the best people in the industry.
• Uses variable compensation that rewards managers as if they were owners.
• As of 2024, senior management had over 150 combined years of death care industry experience.

This structure empowers local leaders while corporate supports with best practices in areas like buying and regulatory compliance.

Developed Cemetery Inventory and Interment Rights

The cemetery segment's developed inventory, specifically interment rights, is a critical, long-term resource, especially given the growth in preneed sales. You have to watch the movement here closely.

Here's how the sales of those rights moved recently in 2025:

• In the third quarter ended September 30, 2025, there was a 4.6% increase in the consolidated number of preneed interment rights sold.
• This Q3 growth was paired with a 15.1% increase in the average price of those preneed interment rights sold.
• Contrast that with the second quarter ended June 30, 2025, which saw a 4.8% decrease in the consolidated number of preneed interment rights sold.

The company is actively working to develop premier inventory, and they anticipate 10%-20% annual preneed cemetery sales growth through 2026. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Value Propositions

You're focused on what actually drives the financial results for Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV), and in the deathcare space, the value proposition is everything. It's not just about the service; it's about how that service translates into sustainable, high-margin revenue, especially when funeral volumes are a headwind.

Delivering a premier, high-value deathcare experience is the stated purpose, and the numbers show this focus is paying off in the high-margin cemetery segment. The company projects full-year 2025 revenues between $\$413$ million and $\$417$ million, aiming for record highs in revenue, Adjusted Consolidated EBITDA between $\$130$ million and $\$132$ million, and Adjusted Diluted EPS of $\$3.25$ to $\$3.30. This premium positioning allows for better pricing power, as seen in Q1 2025 where the consolidated funeral average revenue per contract increased by $2.3\%$.

The full-service offering covers all needs: at-need, pre-need, cremation, and cemetery services. The momentum is clearly in the pre-need and cemetery side of the business. For the third quarter ending September 30, 2025, cemetery preneed sales grew an impressive $21.4\%$ year-over-year, while financial revenue, tied to prearranged sales, jumped $27.2\%$. This contrasts with funeral contract volume, which saw a $2.1\%$ reduction in Q3 2025, though management noted volume was returning to normal in October. The cremation rate for Q3 2025 stood at $61\%$.

Here's a quick look at how the segments are tracking against the full-year expectations based on Q3 results and guidance:

The commitment to localized, empathetic service is executed through a decentralized management philosophy, which helps maintain quality while driving financial security via pre-need planning. The focus on disciplined execution is evident in cost control; overhead expenses dropped to $13.4\%$ of revenues in Q3 2025, down from $14.1\%$ the prior year. This operational discipline supports the financial security proposition.

Financial security through pre-need planning is a core driver. The growth in pre-need cemetery sales is substantial, with the average price per preneed interment right sold in Q3 2025 increasing by $15.1\%$ year-over-year. Furthermore, preneed insurance contracts sold drove a $27.9\%$ increase in general agency commission revenue in Q3 2025. This strategy is clearly designed to lock in future revenue streams.

Unwavering integrity and professionalism underpin the entire model, which is critical in a sensitive industry. The company's focus on execution is reflected in its balance sheet management. Carriage Services, Inc. reduced its leverage ratio to $4.1$x by the end of Q3 2025, down from $5.0$x at the same point last year. This deleveraging, achieved while completing strategic acquisitions and divesting non-core assets, shows a commitment to long-term stability over short-term risk.

You can see the focus on operational excellence across the service lines:

• Delivering premier experiences supports higher average revenue per contract.
• Preneed interment rights sold increased in number by $4.6\%$ in Q3 2025.
• Adjusted Consolidated EBITDA margin expanded by 160 basis points to $32.1\%$ in Q3 2025.
• Adjusted Diluted EPS for Q3 2025 was $\$0.75$, a $17.2\%$ increase over the prior year.
• The company was recognized as #33 on Forbes' Most Successful Small Companies for 2025.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Relationships

You're running a business where the core transaction is deeply personal, so the relationship with the client family is everything. For Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV), this means a commitment to a high-touch, personal service model at the local level. As of late 2025, Carriage Services operates a significant footprint, serving families through 159 funeral homes across 24 states and 28 cemeteries in 9 states. This structure ensures that while the company is a national consolidator, the delivery of service remains intensely local, focusing on creating premier experiences.

The success of this model is evident in the financial results tied to forward-looking commitments. The entire business is built on fostering long-term, trust-based relationships with client families, which is the foundation for their cemetery preneed sales. This trust translates directly into tangible growth. For the third quarter of 2025, Cemetery operating revenue increased by 12.6% year-over-year, driven by a 4.6% increase in the number of preneed interment rights sold. The company is executing on its strategy to capture this long-term value, with management anticipating 10%-20% annual preneed cemetery sales growth through 2026.

The focus on advance planning is supported by dedicated pre-need sales teams for advance planning. This strategy is clearly paying off in the financial segment. Financial revenue, which is tied to these advance arrangements, grew by an impressive 27.2% in Q3 2025 over the prior year quarter. This is a direct measure of the effectiveness of their dedicated sales efforts in securing future business today. It's a powerful indicator of relationship building that spans years, not just weeks.

When we look specifically at relationship management for insurance-funded pre-need contracts, the numbers show exceptional momentum. General agency commission revenue, which stems from these insurance-funded funeral sales, surged by 61% in the third quarter of 2025, reaching $2.6 million. In the first quarter of 2025, net preneed insurance contracts increased by 15% year-over-year, totaling 2,541 for that quarter. September 2025 even marked an all-time high, surpassing the $7 million mark in preneed funeral sales for a single month. This financial success is a direct result of managing and strengthening partnerships with insurance providers like National Guardian Life Insurance Company and Precoa.

While the at-need funeral business saw a slight dip in volume, the commitment to ongoing customer care and grief support services underpins the brand's reputation, which in turn supports the higher average revenue per case. For the nine months ending September 30, 2025, total revenue reached $312.0 million. The company's stated mission is about creating premier experiences, which implies a level of care that extends beyond the immediate service, reinforcing the trust needed for future pre-need decisions. The average revenue per funeral contract did manage an increase of 1.4% in Q2 2025, suggesting that even in the immediate service area, value perception remains high.

Here's a quick look at how relationship-driven segments are performing against the overall picture for the third quarter of 2025:

The company's full-year 2025 guidance reaffirms this focus, projecting total revenues between $413 million and $417 million, with adjusted diluted EPS targeted between $3.25 and $3.30. This sustained financial performance is directly linked to the strength of their customer relationship strategy, especially in securing future revenue through pre-need sales.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Channels

You're looking at how Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) gets its services and products in front of families, which is a mix of physical locations and specialized sales efforts. Honestly, in this industry, the physical footprint is still king, but the pre-need side is heavily reliant on specific sales channels.

The core of the distribution is the physical network. As of June 30, 2025, Carriage Services, Inc. operated 159 funeral homes spread across 25 states. Complementing this, they managed 28 cemeteries located in 10 states. This physical presence is the primary point of service delivery for immediate need arrangements and the foundation for cemetery plot sales.

Here is a snapshot of the scale and some channel-relevant financial performance as of late 2025:

For pre-need funeral and cemetery products, the direct sales force is a critical channel. Carriage Services, Inc. is actively growing this area, which is evident in the financial results. The company remains focused on expanding its insurance-funded pre-need funeral sales. The success of this push is seen in the growth of the financial revenue stream, which saw a 27.2% increase in Q3 2025.

The direct sales effort is supported by specific contract growth metrics:

• Net preneed insurance contracts increased by 332 contracts in Q1 2025.
• This represented a 15% year-over-year increase in new contracts for Q1 2025.
• The total number of contracts for Q1 2025 reached 2,541.

Local community outreach and word-of-mouth referrals are inherent to the funeral home business, though not always quantified with a specific dollar amount in public filings. Still, the company's focus on delivering premier experiences is meant to drive this organic channel. The company is dedicated to delivering premier experiences through innovation, partnership, and elevated service.

The digital presence is being enhanced to support sales acceleration. Carriage Services, Inc. is moving forward with systems like Sales Edge 2.0 and Titan, which are designed to use technology and data analytics to speed up sales growth. This digital layer helps manage initial customer contact and information dissemination, supporting the sales teams.

Third-party insurance partners are explicitly integrated into the pre-need sales channel. Carriage Services, Inc. has a partnership with Express Funeral Funding specifically to streamline the process of insurance assignments, which helps enhance sales across the funeral homes. This partnership acts as a crucial intermediary channel for monetizing pre-need contracts.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Customer Segments

You're looking at the core of Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV)'s business-who they serve and the scale of that service as of late 2025. The customer base is fundamentally split between those needing immediate service and those planning ahead, but the financial data shows a clear strategic push toward the latter.

At-Need Families requiring immediate funeral and cemetery services represent the traditional, immediate demand. While the company is focused on premier service delivery, the volume side for this segment showed some softness in the third quarter of 2025. For the three months ended September 30, 2025, Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) experienced a 5.5% decrease in consolidated funeral contract volume. However, the average revenue per contract for these services still saw a lift, with a 2.0% increase in the consolidated average revenue per funeral contract for the same period. This suggests that while fewer immediate services were conducted, the average transaction value remained higher. For the six months ended June 30, 2025, the consolidated average revenue per funeral contract increased by 1.9%.

Pre-Need Consumers planning and funding services in advance are the primary growth engine, evidenced by strong financial metric increases. The commitment to this segment is clear in the Q3 2025 results: Cemetery preneed sales grew by an impressive 21.4% year-over-year. Furthermore, Financial revenue, which captures the funding mechanism for prearranged funerals, increased by 27.2% over the prior year quarter. This financial component is significant, with General Agency Commission Revenue reaching $2.6 million in Q3 2025, a 61% increase from Q3 2024. The company has a stated target of 10 - 20% targeted CAGR in preneed sales.

Middle to upper-income families seeking premier, high-quality services are targeted through the company's focus on premium offerings and disciplined pricing. This is reflected in the average contract value metrics, which are key indicators of the quality/price point of services being sold across both segments. The company's asset base supports this focus, operating 162 funeral homes across 26 states and 31 cemeteries in 11 states as of the March 2025 investor presentation.

Aging population in key US markets (e.g., Texas, Florida) is the underlying demographic tailwind the entire industry benefits from. Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) is one of only two publicly traded funeral and cemetery services companies in the United States. The company's operations span a wide geographic area, indicating exposure to diverse, aging populations across the country.

Individuals seeking permanent memorialization (cemetery property) are served through the Cemetery Operations segment, which is heavily influenced by preneed sales. For the three months ended September 30, 2025, there was a 1.7% increase in the consolidated number of preneed interment rights (property) sold, coupled with a 16.7% increase in the consolidated average price per preneed interment rights sold. This segment was a major driver of Q3 2025 operating revenue growth, which increased 12.6% over the prior year quarter.

Here's a snapshot of the financial scale related to the services provided to these customer groups in the third quarter of 2025:

The company's strategic acquisitions in Q3 2025 also point directly to customer acquisition, as the closed businesses served over 2,600 families and generated more than $15 million in annual revenue last year. The Funeral segment accounted for approximately 66% of 2024 revenue, with the Cemetery segment making up the remaining 34%.

You'll want to watch the Q4 2025 report to see if the 1.9% increase in the consolidated average revenue per funeral contract from the first half of 2025 can overcome the Q3 volume dip for at-need families. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Cost Structure

You're looking at the core expenses that drive Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) operations as of late 2025. The business model relies heavily on maintaining physical assets, which translates directly into significant fixed and recurring costs.

The high fixed costs related to property and facility maintenance are a constant factor in this industry. For the third quarter of 2025, maintenance capital expenditures alone accounted for $1.7 million of the total CapEx spend. This is the baseline cost just to keep the existing funeral homes and cemeteries in good shape for the families you serve.

Personnel costs for funeral directors and cemetery staff form another major component of the operating expense base. While we don't have a specific personnel cost line item here, these salaries are embedded within the overall overhead structure. The company is focused on managing this base, as evidenced by the year-over-year reduction in interest expense, which fell by $1.1 million in Q3 2025, partly due to debt reduction efforts.

General and administrative (G&A) overhead is a key metric Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) actively manages. For the third quarter of 2025, overhead expenditure was $13.7 million, which represented 13.4% of revenues. This is right in line with the company's stated target range, which management has generally guided to be between 13% to 14% of revenue for the full year 2025.

Debt leverage remains a cost consideration, even with recent improvements. As of the end of Q3 2025, the leverage ratio stood at 4.1x. While this is an improvement from prior periods, it still indicates a significant reliance on debt financing, which carries an associated interest cost.

Capital expenditures for both maintenance and growth are essential for sustaining and expanding the platform. Here's a quick look at the CapEx breakdown from the Q3 2025 report:

• Total Capital Expenditures (Q3 2025): $6.7 million.
• Allocation to Growth Capital: $5 million.
• Allocation to Maintenance Capital: $1.7 million.

To give you a clearer picture of these cost drivers relative to recent performance, here's a table summarizing key financial metrics impacting the cost structure from the Q3 2025 results:

Honestly, the management of fixed property costs and the ongoing debt service are the two biggest non-personnel hurdles in this cost structure. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) - Canvas Business Model: Revenue Streams

You're looking at the money Carriage Services, Inc. (CSV) brings in, which is a mix of immediate needs and future planning, grounded in their two main segments as of late 2025.

The company confirmed its full-year 2025 revenue guidance is projected to land between $413 million and $417 million. That gives you a clear top-line expectation to work with for the year.

Here's how the revenue breaks down by segment, based on the September 30, 2025 figures. It's pretty clear where the bulk of the money comes from:

The Funeral Home segment, which captures most of the At-Need Funeral Service Revenue, is the core engine, making up about 70% of the total pie. Still, the Cemetery side is showing some real momentum, especially in the forward-looking sales.

For the third quarter of 2025, the growth drivers were quite specific:

• Cemetery Operating Revenue increased 12.6% year-over-year.
• Pre-Need Cemetery Sales saw a jump of 21.4% year-over-year.
• Financial Revenue, which includes those general agency commissions, was up 27.2% year-over-year.
• That Financial Revenue growth was largely fueled by pre-need insurance contracts sold, which grew 27.9% compared to the prior year quarter.

The Cemetery Operating Revenue stream includes sales of interment rights and merchandise. That 12.6% increase in Cemetery Operating Revenue in Q3 2025 was helped by a 4.6% increase in the number of preneed interment rights sold, plus a 15.1% increase in the average price of those rights sold. That's a good sign for their future revenue backlog, you see.