Millennium Management LLC Acquires 31,983 Shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI)

Millennium Management LLC raised its position in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Free Report) by 51.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 94,332 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 31,983 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC owned 0.58% of South Plains Financial worth $3,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 6,754 shares of the company's stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 10,360 shares of the company's stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 34,340 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,193,000 after acquiring an additional 991 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,556 shares of the company's stock valued at $193,000 after acquiring an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 23.1% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,013 shares of the company's stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 1,506 shares during the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPFI traded down $0.39 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $35.28. 21,599 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 37,612. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.13 and a 1-year high of $40.91. The company has a market capitalization of $572.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.08 and a beta of 0.70. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $33.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.07. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 11.75% and a net margin of 17.20%. The company had revenue of $49.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.93 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 28th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.00%.

South Plains Financial declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 25th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Raymond James lowered their price objective on South Plains Financial from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Noe G. Valles bought 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $33.00 per share, for a total transaction of $3,300,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 486,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,052,421. This represents a 25.88% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 24.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.