South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 42,300 shares, a decline of 18.8% from the March 31st total of 52,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 28,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Approximately 0.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other South Plains Financial news, Director Noe G. Valles acquired 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.00 per share, for a total transaction of $810,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 195,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,278,824. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Noe G. Valles acquired 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.00 per share, for a total transaction of $810,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 195,512 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,278,824. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $2,475,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,103,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,318,975.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 25.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On South Plains Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SPFI. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank bought a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the third quarter worth about $109,000. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $143,000. Denali Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in South Plains Financial by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 5,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Salzhauer Michael bought a new position in South Plains Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $268,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 35.1% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 12,461 shares of the company’s stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 3,236 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Hovde Group reduced their price target on shares of South Plains Financial from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ SPFI traded up $0.72 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $26.65. 64,956 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 27,141. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $25.84 and a 200-day moving average of $26.85. South Plains Financial has a one year low of $18.75 and a one year high of $30.22. The stock has a market cap of $437.86 million, a PE ratio of 7.13 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.65 by ($0.04). South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 11.32% and a net margin of 21.23%. The business had revenue of $66.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that South Plains Financial will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Investors of record on Monday, April 29th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.97%.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc operates as a bank holding company for City Bank that provides commercial and consumer financial services to small and medium-sized businesses and individuals. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It offers deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, interest-bearing products, savings accounts, and certificate of deposits.