South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director Sells $5,938,951.50 in Stock

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director Richard Campbell sold 132,714 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.75, for a total value of $5,938,951.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,412,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $63,198,411.25. The trade was a 8.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

South Plains Financial Stock Down 0.2%

SPFI stock traded down $0.08 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $45.42. 45,186 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 117,236. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.34 and a 12 month high of $46.94. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $42.05. The company has a market capitalization of $869.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.38 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 (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 20.79% and a return on equity of 13.23%. The business had revenue of $64.49 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.34 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, July 27th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 27th. This is a positive change from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.62%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPFI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, July 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded South Plains Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of South Plains Financial from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.60.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On South Plains Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in South Plains Financial by 71.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 267 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in South Plains Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $32,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in South Plains Financial by 138.8% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 1,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,594 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. 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.