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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.75, for a total transaction of $5,938,951.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,412,255 shares in the company, valued at $63,198,411.25. This represents a 8.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

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

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.02. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 13.23% and a net margin of 20.79%.The business had revenue of $64.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 million. On average, 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 issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 27th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is an increase from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.62%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On South Plains Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 11.0% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 71.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in South Plains Financial by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 7,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 89,245 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,956,000 after buying an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC raised its holdings in South Plains Financial by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 10,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $400,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, July 20th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of South Plains Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 target price (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on South Plains Financial from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.60.

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.