JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Stock Holdings in South Plains Financial, Inc. $SPFI

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) by 9.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 380,987 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,420 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in South Plains Financial were worth $14,725,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in South Plains Financial during the second quarter valued at $336,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 292,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,552,000 after purchasing an additional 14,471 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $321,000. Gabelli Funds LLC acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $4,708,000. Finally, SummerHaven Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $875,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ SPFI opened at $41.95 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $41.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $681.69 million, a P/E ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.60. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $30.01 and a fifty-two week high of $44.00.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $53.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.11 million. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 12.75% and a net margin of 19.69%. On average, research analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, February 23rd that allows the company to repurchase $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were paid a $0.17 dividend. This is a positive change from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SPFI. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on South Plains Financial from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of South Plains Financial from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised their price target on shares of South Plains Financial from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.75.

South Plains Financial 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.