South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Shares Sold by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its stake in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI - Free Report) by 14.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 77,579 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,932 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.47% of South Plains Financial worth $2,696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SPFI. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 39.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,397 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 394 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $101,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its position in South Plains Financial by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 4,631 shares of the company's stock worth $157,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in South Plains Financial by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,556 shares of the company's stock valued at $193,000 after purchasing an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of South Plains Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $205,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Hovde Group upped their target price on South Plains Financial from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective (down from $46.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, January 27th.

South Plains Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SPFI traded up $0.51 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $33.45. 6,323 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 38,616. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.13 and a 12-month high of $40.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $543.09 million, a P/E ratio of 11.46 and a beta of 0.46. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $33.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.03.

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, beating 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 period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

South Plains Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 12th. Investors of record on Monday, April 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 28th. South Plains Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.55%.

South Plains Financial announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at South Plains Financial

In other South Plains Financial news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 21,443 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.36, for a total transaction of $758,224.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 807,240 shares in the company, valued at approximately $28,544,006.40. This represents a 2.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Noe G. Valles acquired 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $33.00 per share, with a total value of $3,300,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 486,437 shares of the company's stock, 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 42,061 shares of company stock worth $1,493,613. 25.39% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.