South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Releases Earnings Results

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.06, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $53.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $54.11 million. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 20.09% and a return on equity of 13.16%.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

SPFI traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $41.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 64,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 71,797. The stock has a market cap of $671.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.81 and a beta of 0.60. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $39.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. South Plains Financial has a 12 month low of $30.01 and a 12 month high of $43.25.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd will be issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a boost from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 2nd. South Plains Financial’s payout ratio is 18.29%.

Institutional Trading of South Plains Financial

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SPFI. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $361,000. Polymer Capital Management US LLC increased its stake in South Plains Financial by 24.4% during the third quarter. Polymer Capital Management US LLC now owns 7,356 shares of the company’s stock worth $284,000 after acquiring an additional 1,445 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in South Plains Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Mariner LLC raised its position in South Plains Financial by 4.4% during the third quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 10,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 434 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 88.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 5,723 shares during the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on South Plains Financial from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Piper Sandler cut South Plains Financial from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $44.00 to $41.00 in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their price target on South Plains Financial from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.75.

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.