South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $37.24 and last traded at $37.24, with a volume of 1220 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.46.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on SPFI shares. Piper Sandler increased their target price on South Plains Financial from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Hovde Group lifted their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $639.21 million, a P/E ratio of 13.41 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.38.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.01. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.59%. The firm had revenue of $72.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.62 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 28th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 28th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. This is a boost from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. South Plains Financial’s payout ratio is presently 23.35%.

Insider Activity

In other South Plains Financial news, Director Noe G. Valles bought 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $30.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 336,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,093,110. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 25.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of South Plains Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SPFI. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 364,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,837,000 after acquiring an additional 30,665 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 14.3% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 239,078 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,451,000 after acquiring an additional 29,933 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 14.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 175,013 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,725,000 after acquiring an additional 22,695 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning bought a new position in South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $504,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 541,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,497,000 after acquiring an additional 12,196 shares in the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc operates as a bank holding company for City Bank that provides commercial and consumer financial services to small and medium-sized businesses and individuals. The company operates through two segments, Banking and Insurance. It offers deposit products, including demand deposit accounts, interest-bearing products, savings accounts, and certificate of deposits.