Business
South Plains Financial, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Year End 2019 Financial Results
LUBBOCK, Texas, Jan. 24, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) (“South Plains” or the “Company”), the parent company of City
About this update from South Plains Financial, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"LUBBOCK, Texas, Jan. 24, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- South Plains Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPFI) (“South Plains” or the “Company”), the parent company of City Bank (“City Bank” or the “Bank”), today reported its financial results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2019. \n Fourth Quarter 2019 Highlights Net income for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $10.1 million, compared to $8.3 million for the third quarter of 2019.Diluted earnings per share were $0.55 for the fourth quarter of 2019, compared to $0.45 for the third quarter of 2019.Average cost of deposits for the fourth quarter of 2019 declined 22 basis points to 76 basis points, compared to 98 basis points for the third quarter of 2019.The efficiency ratio for the fourth quarter of 2019 declined 391 basis points to 69.71%, compared to 73.62% for the third quarter of 2019.Return on average assets for the fourth quarter of 2019 was 1.32% annualized, compared to 1.18% annualized for the third quarter of 2019.Book value per share was $16.98 as of December 31, 2019, compared to $16.61 per share as of September 30, 2019.South Plains completed its acquisition of West Texas State Bank (“WTSB”) on November 12, 2019. WTSB had $198.4 million in loans, $386.3 million in deposits, and $50.5 million in capital at closing. 2019 Annual Financial Highlights Net income for the year ended December 31, 2019 was $29.2 million, or $1.69 per diluted share, compared to $20.8 million, or $1.41 per diluted share, for the year ended December 31, 2018.The efficiency ratio for the year ended December 31, 2019 declined 235 basis points from the year ended December 31, 2018.Return on average assets was 1.04% and return on average equity was 10.94% for the year ended December 31, 2019, compared to 0.79% and 9.66%, respectively, for the year ended December 31, 2018. Curtis Griffith, South Plains’ Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “I am very proud of our results as 2019 was a pivotal period in our Company’s 75+ year history highlighted by our initial public offering in May and the closing of our acquisition of WTSB in November. We believe we are at a clear inflection point in our business as we successfully execute upon our strategy to scale the significant investments in our systems and infrastructure, which continue to have ample room for future growth. Our fourth quarter 2019 results de...