South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the six analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $46.25.

Several brokerages have commented on SPFI. Piper Sandler decreased 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 note on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research lowered South Plains Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised South Plains Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised South Plains Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SPFI opened at $41.13 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. South Plains Financial has a 12 month low of $33.66 and a 12 month high of $45.09. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $41.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $40.88. The stock has a market cap of $787.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 0.47.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.88 by ($0.03). South Plains Financial had a net margin of 20.22% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The business had revenue of $54.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.08 million. As a group, analysts predict that South Plains Financial will post 3.79 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, April 27th were issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 27th. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.05%.

South Plains Financial announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, February 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 1.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James D. Stein sold 1,560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.07, for a total transaction of $62,509.20. Following the sale, the director directly owned 342,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,738,881.04. This trade represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold 30,000 shares of company stock worth $1,204,340 over the last quarter. 24.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of South Plains Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares 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. purchased a new position in South Plains Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in South Plains Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $57,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in South Plains Financial by 138.8% during the fourth 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. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in South Plains Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $60,000. 54.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.