South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director Sells $1,231,690.04 in Stock

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director Richard Campbell sold 27,286 shares of South Plains Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.14, for a total transaction of $1,231,690.04. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,384,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,517,500.66. The trade was a 1.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

South Plains Financial Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of South Plains Financial stock opened at $44.65 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $42.86 and a 200 day moving average of $42.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $855.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.17 and a beta of 0.46. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $35.34 and a fifty-two week high of $46.94.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $64.49 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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, research analysts predict that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, July 27th will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This is an increase from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 27th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. South Plains Financial’s payout ratio is presently 19.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Institutional Trading of South Plains Financial

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SPFI. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 71.2% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in South Plains Financial by 138.8% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 1,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in South Plains Financial by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

About South Plains Financial

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.