Hovde Group Boosts South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Price Target to $41.00

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) had its price target lifted by Hovde Group from $36.00 to $41.00 in a research note released on Friday, MarketBeat.com reports. Hovde Group currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

Separately, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd.

South Plains Financial Stock Down 0.9 %

NASDAQ SPFI traded down $0.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $33.48. 24,794 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 35,585. The firm has a market cap of $549.71 million, a PE ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.91. South Plains Financial has a 52-week low of $24.05 and a 52-week high of $35.61. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.87.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.01. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 16.53% and a return on equity of 11.42%. The company had revenue of $72.28 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.90 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial will post 2.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, November 12th. Investors of record on Monday, October 28th will be paid a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, October 28th. This is an increase from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Noe G. Valles purchased 50,000 shares of South Plains Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $30.00 per share, with a total value of $1,500,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 336,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,093,110. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other South Plains Financial news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 9,591 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.10, for a total transaction of $288,689.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 987,307 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,717,940.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Noe G. Valles bought 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $30.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 336,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,093,110. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 25.39% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 45.1% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 18,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 5,624 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 95,172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,547,000 after buying an additional 7,175 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 541,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,497,000 after buying an additional 12,196 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 209,145 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,595,000 after buying an additional 7,562 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 63,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,713,000 after buying an additional 4,787 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

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.