Brokerages Set S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Price Target at $590.86

Shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $590.86.

SPGI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of S&P Global from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $590.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company.

S&P Global Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SPGI opened at $508.95 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $515.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $510.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $156.66 billion, a PE ratio of 41.21, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.20. S&P Global has a 52 week low of $407.69 and a 52 week high of $545.39.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 14.33%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.13 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that S&P Global will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.75%. This is an increase from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On S&P Global

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in S&P Global by 3.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,868,375 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,581,580,000 after buying an additional 292,436 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in S&P Global by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,589,982 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,273,264,000 after acquiring an additional 116,208 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in S&P Global by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,965,369 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,081,830,000 after purchasing an additional 369,598 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth $1,725,084,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,276,043 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,631,568,000 after purchasing an additional 525,347 shares during the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.