South Plains Financial Inc. Purchases Shares of 7,956 South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI)

South Plains Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $276,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SPFI. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in South Plains Financial by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 10,360 shares of the company's stock worth $360,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 34,340 shares of the company's stock worth $1,193,000 after purchasing an additional 991 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in South Plains Financial by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,556 shares of the company's stock worth $193,000 after buying an additional 1,175 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in South Plains Financial by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 8,013 shares of the company's stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 1,506 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 19,036 shares of the company's stock worth $661,000 after acquiring an additional 1,512 shares during the period. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on SPFI shares. Raymond James dropped their price target on South Plains Financial from $39.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $45.00 price target (down previously from $46.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Hovde Group increased their price objective on South Plains Financial from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 15,422 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.69, for a total value of $550,411.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 854,818 shares in the company, valued at $30,508,454.42. This represents a 1.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Noe G. Valles acquired 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $33.00 per share, for a total transaction of $3,300,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 486,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at $16,052,421. The trade was a 25.88 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 42,061 shares of company stock valued at $1,493,613 in the last 90 days. 25.39% of the stock is owned by insiders.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

Shares of SPFI stock traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $34.19. 9,038 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 38,732. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $25.13 and a 52-week high of $40.91. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $32.86 and a 200 day moving average of $35.02. The company has a market cap of $555.11 million, a PE ratio of 11.71 and a beta of 0.70.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm 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 posted $0.64 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.00%.

South Plains Financial declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 25th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

South Plains Financial Company Profile

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.