South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.02 EPS

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.02, FiscalAI reports. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 20.22% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The firm had revenue of $64.49 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.34 million.

South Plains Financial Trading Up 3.5%

SPFI opened at $44.25 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $41.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.55. South Plains Financial has a 52 week low of $35.34 and a 52 week high of $45.09. The company has a market capitalization of $847.39 million, a P/E ratio of 12.39 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 27th will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 27th. This is a positive change from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. South Plains Financial’s payout ratio is 19.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on SPFI shares. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $53.00 price objective for the company. Zacks Research downgraded South Plains Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised South Plains Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 10th. Weiss Ratings raised South Plains Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $47.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at South Plains Financial

In other South Plains Financial news, Director James D. Stein sold 1,560 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.07, for a total transaction of $62,509.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 342,872 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,738,881.04. This represents a 0.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders sold 30,000 shares of company stock worth $1,204,340. Corporate insiders own 24.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On South Plains Financial

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in South Plains Financial by 4.7% in the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 80,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,094,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 91,763 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,560,000 after acquiring an additional 8,749 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of South Plains Financial by 57.5% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 71,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,767,000 after purchasing an additional 26,042 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in South Plains Financial by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 23,442 shares of the company’s stock valued at $910,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL acquired a new position in South Plains Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $695,000. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

South Plains Financial Company Profile

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.