Short Interest in South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Drops By 18.8%

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 42,300 shares, a decline of 18.8% from the March 31st total of 52,100 shares. Approximately 0.4% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 28,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.5 days.

South Plains Financial Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of SPFI stock traded down $0.45 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $25.93. 39,890 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 23,856. South Plains Financial has a 1 year low of $18.75 and a 1 year high of $30.22. The company’s 50 day moving average is $25.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $426.03 million, a PE ratio of 6.93 and a beta of 0.56.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by ($0.04). South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 11.32% and a net margin of 21.23%. The firm had revenue of $66.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $47.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that South Plains Financial will post 2.39 EPS for the current year.

South Plains Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 26th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.16%. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 13.90%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $2,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,103,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,318,975.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other South Plains Financial news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $2,475,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,103,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,318,975.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.00, for a total value of $1,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,253,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,344,925. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 25.39% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $143,000. Denali Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 5,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Salzhauer Michael purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $268,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 3,236 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.95% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPFI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Hovde Group lowered their price target on South Plains Financial from $34.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Raymond James upped their price target on South Plains Financial from $28.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th.

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.