South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) Shares Break Below 200 Day Moving Average After Insider Selling

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI)’s share price crossed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $42.71 and traded as low as $42.26. South Plains Financial shares last traded at $42.65, with a volume of 70,917 shares trading hands.

Specifically, Director Richard Campbell sold 16,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.28, for a total transaction of $722,776.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,307,658 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,595,438.24. The trade was a 1.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard Campbell sold 8,054 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.28, for a total transaction of $348,577.12. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,324,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $57,318,214.24. This trade represents a 0.60% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPFI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of South Plains Financial in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price target (up from $48.00) on shares of South Plains Financial in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of South Plains Financial in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded South Plains Financial from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $49.60.

South Plains Financial Trading Down 0.4%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $803.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.31 and a beta of 0.47.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.07. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 12.36% and a net margin of 21.23%. The company had revenue of $65.27 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $65.22 million. On average, research analysts expect that South Plains Financial, Inc. will post 3.86 EPS for the current year.

South Plains Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be given a $0.19 dividend. This is an increase from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 2nd. South Plains Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On South Plains Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of South Plains Financial by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 96,789 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,039,000 after acquiring an additional 4,392 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of South Plains Financial by 30.9% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 71,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,971,000 after acquiring an additional 16,787 shares in the last quarter. TIAA CREF Individual & Institutional Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of South Plains Financial in the third quarter worth about $201,000. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in South Plains Financial by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 146,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,108,000 after acquiring an additional 19,958 shares during the period. Finally, Diversified Trust Co acquired a new stake in South Plains Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $206,000. 54.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About South Plains Financial

South Plains Financial, Inc. is a bank holding company headquartered in Lubbock, Texas, and the parent company of City Bank. Through City Bank, it provides banking and related financial services to individuals, businesses and other organizations. Its services include personal and commercial deposit accounts, lending, mortgage banking, treasury management and wealth-related services. The company serves customers primarily in Texas and New Mexico through its branch network and other banking channels.