S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Shares Acquired by Bailard Inc.

Bailard Inc. increased its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 29,867 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $14,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SPGI. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of S&P Global in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Human Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global in the third quarter worth $31,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of S&P Global by 94.4% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 70 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the period. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

S&P Global Price Performance

NYSE SPGI opened at $534.09 on Friday. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $407.69 and a fifty-two week high of $545.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $513.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $510.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $164.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a return on equity of 14.33% and a net margin of 27.12%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.13 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This is a positive change from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPGI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on S&P Global from $590.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. StockNews.com cut S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Citigroup initiated coverage on S&P Global in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $590.23.

About S&P Global

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.