1,430,745 Shares in South Plains Financial, Inc. $SPFI Bought by BlackRock Inc.

BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 1,430,745 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $61,644,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 7.47% of South Plains Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in SPFI. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in South Plains Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,451,000. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS bought a new position in South Plains Financial during the second quarter worth about $1,659,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the second quarter worth about $2,410,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 91.0% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 45,721 shares of the company's stock worth $1,916,000 after purchasing an additional 21,786 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,753 shares of the company's stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 634 shares during the period. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPFI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 target price on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, July 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded South Plains Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. Weiss Ratings raised South Plains Financial from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price target (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $49.60.

Insider Activity at South Plains Financial

In other news, Director James D. Stein sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.54, for a total value of $4,454,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 242,872 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,817,518.88. This represents a 29.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Richard D. Campbell sold 27,286 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.14, for a total transaction of $1,231,690.04. Following the sale, the director owned 1,384,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $62,517,500.66. This represents a 1.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 260,000 shares of company stock worth $11,624,642 in the last 90 days. 24.29% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

SPFI stock opened at $43.66 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.97. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $35.34 and a 52 week high of $46.94. The firm's fifty day moving average is $43.88 and its 200 day moving average is $42.41. The firm has a market cap of $822.55 million, a P/E ratio of 11.90 and a beta of 0.46.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $64.49 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 million. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 12.36% and a net margin of 20.79%. Research analysts predict that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Investors of record on Monday, July 27th were paid a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 27th. This is an increase from South Plains Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.62%.

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.

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