S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) Price Target Raised to $592.00

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) had its target price upped by Oppenheimer from $567.00 to $592.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Oppenheimer currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on SPGI. Argus upgraded S&P Global to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Bank of America assumed coverage on S&P Global in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on S&P Global from $616.00 to $589.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on S&P Global from $629.00 to $603.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on S&P Global from $607.00 to $627.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $593.93.

S&P Global Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:SPGI opened at $531.02 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $512.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $504.30. The company has a market capitalization of $162.86 billion, a PE ratio of 41.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. S&P Global has a 52-week low of $427.14 and a 52-week high of $545.39.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.23 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. S&P Global had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 27.27%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.01 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that S&P Global will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be issued a $0.96 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.16%.

Insider Activity at S&P Global

In other news, EVP Sally Moore sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.43, for a total value of $255,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,131 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,619,016.33. This trade represents a 8.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of S&P Global

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 37,746 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $18,799,000 after purchasing an additional 6,051 shares during the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth $14,040,000. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC now owns 11,499 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,727,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 20.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,210 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,139,000 after purchasing an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Coalescence Partners Investment Management LP raised its holdings in S&P Global by 62.7% during the fourth quarter. Coalescence Partners Investment Management LP now owns 30,089 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $14,985,000 after purchasing an additional 11,599 shares during the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.