Washington Trust Bank Trims Position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Washington Trust Bank reduced its holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 476 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 43 shares during the period. Washington Trust Bank’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in SPGI. Capital International Investors raised its position in S&P Global by 5.3% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,793,751 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,464,951,000 after acquiring an additional 291,712 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,652,862,000. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,818,729 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,241,706,000 after purchasing an additional 12,644 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,624,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,156,060,000 after purchasing an additional 279,633 shares during the period. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC boosted its holdings in S&P Global by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 2,467,429 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,086,952,000 after buying an additional 7,887 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

S&P Global Price Performance

SPGI traded up $5.01 on Friday, hitting $513.06. 1,245,368 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,237,968. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $478.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $444.88. The stock has a market cap of $160.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $340.49 and a fifty-two week high of $514.00.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $4.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.37. The company had revenue of $3.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. S&P Global had a net margin of 25.03% and a return on equity of 13.03%. S&P Global’s revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.12 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that S&P Global Inc. will post 14.58 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.81%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SPGI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $530.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on S&P Global from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on S&P Global from $486.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. UBS Group upped their target price on S&P Global from $505.00 to $555.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on S&P Global from $532.00 to $537.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $530.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at S&P Global

In other news, insider Edouard Tavernier sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total transaction of $245,775.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,217 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,496,816.35. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Edouard Tavernier sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total transaction of $245,775.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,496,816.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Steven J. Kemps sold 2,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total value of $1,327,185.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,455 shares in the company, valued at $715,205.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 17,862 shares of company stock worth $8,645,727 in the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

S&P Global Profile

S&P Global Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics, and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity, and automotive markets. It operates through S&P Global Market Intelligence, S&P Global Ratings, S&P Global Commodity Insights, S&P Global Mobility, S&P Dow Jones Indices, and S&P Global Engineering Solutions segments.