South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Stock Has Average Target Price of $49.60 According to Brokerages

Shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $49.60.

SPFI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 price target (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Friday, September 25th.

South Plains Financial Trading Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:SPFI opened at $42.80 on Friday. South Plains Financial has a 12 month low of $35.34 and a 12 month high of $46.94. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a market capitalization of $806.35 million, a P/E ratio of 11.66 and a beta of 0.49.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 17th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.02. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 20.79% and a return on equity of 12.36%. The firm had revenue of $64.49 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 27th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 27th. This is a positive change from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at South Plains Financial

In other news, Director James Stein sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.54, for a total value of $4,454,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 242,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,817,518.88. This represents a 29.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard Campbell sold 27,286 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.14, for a total transaction of $1,231,690.04. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,384,969 shares in the company, valued at $62,517,500.66. The trade was a 1.93% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 260,000 shares of company stock worth $11,624,642 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 24.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On South Plains Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SPFI. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $204,000. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $562,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $421,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the second quarter worth about $3,346,000. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the second quarter worth about $481,000. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

South Plains Financial Company Profile

South Plains Financial, Inc (NASDAQ:SPFI) is a bank holding company headquartered in Lubbock, Texas. Through its principal subsidiary, City Bank, the company provides banking and related financial services to individuals, businesses, agricultural customers and communities in Texas and New Mexico.

City Bank offers a range of products and services, including commercial and consumer lending, real estate loans, agricultural financing, deposit accounts, treasury management, online and mobile banking, mortgage lending, trust and wealth management, and insurance services.