South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) Stock Holdings Reduced by Trexquant Investment LP

Trexquant Investment LP cut its position in shares of South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) by 36.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,968 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,735 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP owned 0.06% of South Plains Financial worth $346,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SPFI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 200.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 175,774 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,962,000 after purchasing an additional 117,207 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new position in South Plains Financial during the third quarter valued at about $223,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position 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 buying an additional 1,891 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 274,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,318,000 after acquiring an additional 12,271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 29.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 53,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,810,000 after acquiring an additional 12,200 shares during the last quarter. 54.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 5,196 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.60, for a total transaction of $184,977.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 828,683 shares in the company, valued at $29,501,114.80. The trade was a 0.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Noe G. Valles purchased 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $33.00 per share, with a total value of $3,300,000.00. Following 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,061 shares of company stock valued at $1,493,613. Insiders own 25.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Hovde Group boosted their target price on South Plains Financial from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set 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 Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPFI opened at $30.73 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $506.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52 and a beta of 0.46. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $33.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. South Plains Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $24.50 and a twelve month high of $40.91.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the business earned $0.61 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current year.

South Plains Financial announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 25th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

South Plains Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. South Plains Financial’s payout ratio is 20.55%.

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.