Bank of New York Mellon Corp Sells 1,530 Shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI)

Bank of New York Mellon Corp trimmed its stake in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 52,561 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,530 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in South Plains Financial were worth $1,826,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 200.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 175,774 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,962,000 after purchasing an additional 117,207 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new stake in South Plains Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 72.4% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 4,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,891 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 4.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 274,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,318,000 after purchasing an additional 12,271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 29.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 53,367 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,810,000 after purchasing an additional 12,200 shares in the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 price objective (down previously from $46.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

South Plains Financial Trading Down 1.0 %

SPFI stock opened at $32.58 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $537.11 million, a PE ratio of 11.16 and a beta of 0.60. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.05 and a 12 month high of $40.91. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $34.68 and its 200 day moving average is $35.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.29. South Plains Financial had a net margin of 17.20% and a return on equity of 11.75%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current year.

South Plains Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.55%.

South Plains Financial announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 15,422 shares of South Plains Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.69, for a total transaction of $550,411.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 854,818 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,508,454.42. The trade was a 1.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Noe G. Valles bought 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $33.00 per share, with a total value of $3,300,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 486,437 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,052,421. This represents a 25.88 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 42,061 shares of company stock worth $1,493,613 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 25.39% 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.