South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director Sells $4,454,000.00 in Stock

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director James Stein sold 100,000 shares of the company’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 $10,817,518.88. The trade was a 29.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPFI traded down $0.42 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $44.68. 118,219 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 116,172. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $42.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.91. The company has a market cap of $855.62 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.17 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.34 and a 52 week high of $46.94.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $64.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 million. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 13.23% and a net margin of 20.79%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 3.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a boost from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 27th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.62%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SPFI. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of South Plains Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.60.

Institutional Trading of South Plains Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SPFI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 437,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,994,000 after acquiring an additional 57,008 shares in the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,410,000. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS bought a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,659,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in South Plains Financial by 349.0% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 46,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,797,000 after purchasing an additional 36,147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,451,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

South Plains Financial Company Profile

South Plains Financial, Inc is the bank holding company for South Plains Bank, a community-oriented financial institution headquartered in Lubbock, Texas. The company operates as a full-service commercial bank, providing a broad spectrum of banking solutions to individuals, small businesses and agricultural clients. Its principal subsidiary, South Plains Bank, holds state and national banking charters and is subject to regulatory oversight by the Federal Reserve and various state banking authorities.

The company’s product offerings include traditional deposit accounts such as checking, savings and money market accounts, as well as time deposits.