South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Six brokerages give South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average 12‑month price target of $46.75; several analysts (Hovde, Raymond James, Piper Sandler) recently raised targets/ratings while Zacks cut to hold.
• South Plains beat quarterly EPS estimates ($0.90 vs. $0.84), trades near $43.30 with a market cap of $707.5M and a P/E of 12.6, and has authorized a $10.0 million share buyback while declaring a $0.17 quarterly dividend (1.6% yield).

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the six brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $46.75.

SPFI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Hovde Group increased their price target on shares of South Plains Financial from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Raymond James Financial increased their price target on shares of South Plains Financial from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler raised shares of South Plains Financial from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $48.00 in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of South Plains Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SPFI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 437,995 shares of the company's stock worth $16,994,000 after purchasing an additional 57,008 shares during the last quarter. Elizabeth Park Capital Advisors Ltd. bought a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $1,624,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 349.0% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 46,503 shares of the company's stock worth $1,797,000 after purchasing an additional 36,147 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 63.3% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 76,792 shares of the company's stock worth $2,968,000 after purchasing an additional 29,767 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 69.2% in the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 72,134 shares of the company's stock worth $2,799,000 after purchasing an additional 29,509 shares during the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

South Plains Financial Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of South Plains Financial stock opened at $43.30 on Friday. South Plains Financial has a 12-month low of $31.49 and a 12-month high of $44.58. The company has a market cap of $707.52 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.59 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company's 50-day moving average price is $42.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.04.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.06. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 19.69% and a return on equity of 12.51%. The firm had revenue of $54.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.11 million. On average, equities analysts expect that South Plains Financial will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 11th. Investors of record on Monday, April 27th will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 27th. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio is 19.77%.

South Plains Financial declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, February 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 1.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.