S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) has received an average recommendation of “Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $535.25.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on SPGI shares. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $530.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of S&P Global from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on S&P Global from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Barclays boosted their price target on S&P Global from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on S&P Global from $486.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st.

S&P Global Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:SPGI opened at $520.00 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $162.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a 50 day moving average of $489.43 and a 200-day moving average of $450.06. S&P Global has a one year low of $340.49 and a one year high of $521.50.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.37. S&P Global had a net margin of 25.03% and a return on equity of 13.03%. The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.12 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that S&P Global will post 14.58 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be given a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.81%.

Insider Activity

In other S&P Global news, insider Edouard Tavernier sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total transaction of $245,775.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,496,816.35. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other S&P Global news, insider Edouard Tavernier sold 500 shares of S&P Global stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total transaction of $245,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,496,816.35. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven J. Kemps sold 2,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total transaction of $1,327,185.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 1,455 shares in the company, valued at $715,205.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,862 shares of company stock valued at $8,645,727. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On S&P Global

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in S&P Global by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,793,751 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,464,951,000 after buying an additional 291,712 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth about $1,652,862,000. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in shares of S&P Global by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,826,597 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,260,665,000 after purchasing an additional 29,227 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,818,729 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,241,706,000 after purchasing an additional 12,644 shares during the period. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its position in shares of S&P Global by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,624,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,156,060,000 after buying an additional 279,633 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Company Profile

S&P Global Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics, and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity, and automotive markets. It operates through S&P Global Market Intelligence, S&P Global Ratings, S&P Global Commodity Insights, S&P Global Mobility, S&P Dow Jones Indices, and S&P Global Engineering Solutions segments.