South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Stock Holdings Lifted by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 248,456 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 35,207 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 1.52% of South Plains Financial worth $8,634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in South Plains Financial by 200.1% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 175,774 shares of the company's stock worth $5,962,000 after acquiring an additional 117,207 shares during the last quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,882,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 77.2% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 47,659 shares of the company's stock worth $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 20,756 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in South Plains Financial by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 274,701 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,318,000 after purchasing an additional 12,271 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 29.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 53,367 shares of the company's stock worth $1,810,000 after buying an additional 12,200 shares during the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SPFI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $45.00 target price (down from $46.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Hovde Group lifted their price objective on shares of South Plains Financial from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

SPFI stock traded down $0.25 on Tuesday, reaching $30.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 43,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 38,445. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $24.05 and a 52 week high of $40.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The company has a market capitalization of $509.91 million, a P/E ratio of 10.59 and a beta of 0.46. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $33.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.13.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.29. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 11.75% and a net margin of 17.20%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.55%.

South Plains Financial declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 25th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at South Plains Financial

In other South Plains Financial news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 15,422 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was 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 approximately $30,508,454.42. This trade represents a 1.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Noe G. Valles purchased 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $33.00 per share, for a total transaction of $3,300,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 486,437 shares in the company, valued at $16,052,421. This trade represents a 25.88 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,061 shares of company stock valued at $1,493,613. Company insiders own 25.39% of the company's stock.

South Plains Financial 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.