South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Given New $36.00 Price Target at Piper Sandler

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) had its target price hoisted by Piper Sandler from $32.00 to $36.00 in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Separately, Hovde Group upped their price target on South Plains Financial from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th.

South Plains Financial Price Performance

SPFI opened at $33.08 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. South Plains Financial has a 1 year low of $23.75 and a 1 year high of $33.85. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $27.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.93. The firm has a market cap of $543.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84 and a beta of 0.59.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.56 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $71.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.50 million. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 16.53% and a return on equity of 11.58%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that South Plains Financial will post 2.52 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 29th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 29th. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.97%.

Insider Transactions at South Plains Financial

In other news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 7,830 shares of South Plains Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.12, for a total transaction of $204,519.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,055,967 shares in the company, valued at $27,581,858.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 25.39% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On South Plains Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 22.8% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $192,000 after purchasing an additional 1,230 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in South Plains Financial by 35.1% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 12,461 shares of the company’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 3,236 shares during the period. Salzhauer Michael purchased a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $268,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 8.2% during 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 during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake 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 worth $14,497,000 after buying an additional 12,196 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

About South Plains Financial

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.