Vident Advisory LLC Raises Stock Position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Vident Advisory LLC lifted its position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 12.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,943 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 778 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $3,458,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Human Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its position in shares of S&P Global by 131.0% in the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Stock Down 0.4%

SPGI stock opened at $522.07 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $489.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $503.11. The company has a market capitalization of $160.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. S&P Global Inc. has a 12 month low of $419.49 and a 12 month high of $545.39.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.23 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $3.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 14.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.01 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be issued a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 28th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Sally Moore sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.43, for a total value of $255,215.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,131 shares in the company, valued at $2,619,016.33. The trade was a 8.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SPGI. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $555.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of S&P Global from $616.00 to $589.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, S&P Global presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $592.71.

S&P Global Company Profile

S&P Global, Inc engages in the provision of transparent and independent ratings, benchmarks, analytics, and data to the capital and commodity markets worldwide. It operates through the following segments: Market Intelligence, Ratings, Commodity Insights, Mobility, Indices, and Engineering Solutions.