S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) Research Coverage Started at Bank of America

Bank of America started coverage on shares of S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) in a research note published on Thursday. The firm issued a buy rating and a $600.00 price objective on the business services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Oppenheimer reduced 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 research note on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho assumed coverage on S&P Global in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on S&P Global in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $595.14.

S&P Global Stock Performance

Shares of S&P Global stock opened at $465.14 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $504.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $506.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $145.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.26. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $407.69 and a fifty-two week high of $545.39.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 posted $3.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that S&P Global 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 was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. 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 0.83%. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.09%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On S&P Global

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SPGI. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in S&P Global by 131.0% during the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.