South Plains Financial, Inc. (SPFI) – What Are Investment Firms Thinking About This Stock?

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $49.60.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, July 20th.

Insider Transactions at South Plains Financial

In other South Plains Financial news, Director Richard Campbell sold 27,286 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.14, for a total value of $1,231,690.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,384,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,517,500.66. The trade was a 1.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James Stein sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.54, for a total transaction of $4,454,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 242,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,817,518.88. This trade represents a 29.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 260,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,624,642 in the last quarter. 24.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of South Plains Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $204,000. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $562,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $421,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,346,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $481,000. Institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

South Plains Financial Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:SPFI opened at $42.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $804.84 million, a PE ratio of 11.65 and a beta of 0.49. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $43.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.87. South Plains Financial has a 1 year low of $35.34 and a 1 year high of $46.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.02. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 12.36% and a net margin of 20.79%. The firm had revenue of $64.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.34 million. On average, equities analysts predict that South Plains Financial will post 3.77 EPS for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, July 27th were paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 27th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. South Plains Financial’s payout ratio is 19.62%.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc (NASDAQ:SPFI) is a bank holding company headquartered in Lubbock, Texas. Through its principal subsidiary, City Bank, the company provides banking and related financial services to individuals, businesses, agricultural customers and communities in Texas and New Mexico.

City Bank offers a range of products and services, including commercial and consumer lending, real estate loans, agricultural financing, deposit accounts, treasury management, online and mobile banking, mortgage lending, trust and wealth management, and insurance services.