S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $591.86.

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho started coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of S&P Global from $633.00 to $607.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on S&P Global from $590.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th.

S&P Global Price Performance

SPGI stock opened at $462.55 on Friday. S&P Global has a 1 year low of $407.69 and a 1 year high of $545.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $145.17 billion, a PE ratio of 37.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.26. The company’s 50-day moving average is $499.33 and its 200-day moving average is $504.61. 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 (NYSE:SPGI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 period last year, the company earned $3.13 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that S&P Global will post 17.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.83%. This is a boost from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s payout ratio is presently 31.09%.

Institutional Trading of S&P Global

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC purchased a new position in S&P Global in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new position in S&P Global during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its stake in shares of S&P Global by 131.0% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

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.