South Plains Financial (SPFI) Competitors

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) and Community Trust Bancorp (NASDAQ:CTBI) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, earnings, institutional ownership, risk and valuation.

Does the media prefer SPFI or CTBI?

In the previous week, Community Trust Bancorp had 6 more articles in the media than South Plains Financial. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for Community Trust Bancorp and 0 mentions for South Plains Financial. Community Trust Bancorp's average media sentiment score of 1.13 beat South Plains Financial's score of 0.00 indicating that Community Trust Bancorp is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
South Plains Financial	Neutral
Community Trust Bancorp	Positive

Which has more volatility and risk, SPFI or CTBI?

South Plains Financial has a beta of 0.72, meaning that its share price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Community Trust Bancorp has a beta of 0.62, meaning that its share price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is SPFI or CTBI a better dividend stock?

South Plains Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Community Trust Bancorp pays an annual dividend of $1.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. South Plains Financial pays out 20.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Community Trust Bancorp pays out 37.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. South Plains Financial has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years and Community Trust Bancorp has increased its dividend for 44 consecutive years. Community Trust Bancorp is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is SPFI or CTBI more profitable?

Community Trust Bancorp has a net margin of 23.33% compared to South Plains Financial's net margin of 18.59%. South Plains Financial's return on equity of 12.27% beat Community Trust Bancorp's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
South Plains Financial	18.59%	12.27%	1.26%
Community Trust Bancorp	23.33%	11.77%	1.47%

Do institutionals and insiders believe in SPFI or CTBI?

55.0% of South Plains Financial shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.2% of Community Trust Bancorp shares are held by institutional investors. 25.4% of South Plains Financial shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.3% of Community Trust Bancorp shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Do analysts recommend SPFI or CTBI?

South Plains Financial currently has a consensus target price of $44.67, suggesting a potential upside of 8.13%. Community Trust Bancorp has a consensus target price of $64.50, suggesting a potential upside of 9.99%. Given Community Trust Bancorp's higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Community Trust Bancorp is more favorable than South Plains Financial.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
South Plains Financial	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Community Trust Bancorp	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, SPFI or CTBI?

Community Trust Bancorp has higher revenue and earnings than South Plains Financial. Community Trust Bancorp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than South Plains Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
South Plains Financial	$288.97M	2.32	$49.72M	$3.20	12.91
Community Trust Bancorp	$376.01M	2.82	$82.81M	$5.08	11.54

Summary

Community Trust Bancorp beats South Plains Financial on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.