South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Director Sells $617,398.46 in Stock

Key Points

• Director Sale: South Plains Financial Director Richard Campbell sold 15,583 shares for a total of $617,398.46, reducing his ownership by 1.01% but still holding approximately 1.53 million shares valued at over $60 million.
• Quarterly Earnings Beat: The company reported earnings of $0.86 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $0.77, alongside a revenue of $54.67 million, above the anticipated $52.24 million.
• Dividend Increase: South Plains Financial announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.16 per share from the previous $0.15, resulting in an annual yield of 1.6% with a payout ratio of 20%.

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) Director Richard D. Campbell sold 15,583 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.62, for a total transaction of $617,398.46. Following the sale, the director owned 1,529,386 shares of the company's stock, valued at $60,594,273.32. This trade represents a 1.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

South Plains Financial stock traded down $1.43 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $39.22. The company had a trading volume of 160,699 shares, compared to its average volume of 42,627. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $30.01 and a 1 year high of $42.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company has a market capitalization of $636.93 million, a P/E ratio of 12.26 and a beta of 0.72. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $39.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.08.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.09. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 18.59% and a return on equity of 12.27%. The business had revenue of $54.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $52.24 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 28th were issued a $0.16 dividend. This is a boost from South Plains Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 28th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On South Plains Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SPFI. Gabelli Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,708,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 34.5% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 346,567 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,490,000 after buying an additional 88,992 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 352.5% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 92,768 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,072,000 after buying an additional 72,269 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,809,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 51.3% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 94,332 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,278,000 after buying an additional 31,983 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.95% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on SPFI. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $42.00 target price (up previously from $38.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Zacks Research lowered shares of South Plains Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.67.

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.