South Plains Financial, Inc. (SPFI) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.15 on November 12th

South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 17th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Monday, October 28th will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share on Tuesday, November 12th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 28th. This is a boost from South Plains Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14.

South Plains Financial has increased its dividend by an average of 54.9% per year over the last three years. South Plains Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 22.1% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect South Plains Financial to earn $2.74 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 21.9%.

South Plains Financial Stock Down 0.9 %

SPFI opened at $33.48 on Friday. South Plains Financial has a 1-year low of $24.05 and a 1-year high of $35.61. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market capitalization of $549.71 million, a PE ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 0.58.

South Plains Financial (NASDAQ:SPFI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $72.28 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.90 million. South Plains Financial had a return on equity of 11.42% and a net margin of 16.53%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that South Plains Financial will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at South Plains Financial

In other South Plains Financial news, Director Noe G. Valles bought 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $30.00 per share, with a total value of $1,500,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 336,437 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,093,110. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Noe G. Valles bought 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $30.00 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 336,437 shares in the company, valued at $10,093,110. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Curtis C. Griffith sold 9,591 shares of South Plains Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.10, for a total transaction of $288,689.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 987,307 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,717,940.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 25.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on SPFI. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of South Plains Financial from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Hovde Group increased their price objective on shares of South Plains Financial from $36.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday.

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.