Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators Trims Stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lessened its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 20.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 333 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 85 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ holdings in S&P Global were worth $166,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings in S&P Global by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 921 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $459,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT raised its position in shares of S&P Global by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 86,946 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,302,000 after acquiring an additional 1,503 shares during the period. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth about $149,000. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of S&P Global by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Cordatus Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,624 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,303,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of S&P Global by 106.6% in the 4th quarter. Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 2,948 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,468,000 after purchasing an additional 1,521 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Stock Down 0.4 %

SPGI stock opened at $533.05 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $510.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $509.03. S&P Global Inc. has a 12 month low of $407.69 and a 12 month high of $545.39. The company has a market cap of $164.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.16, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $3.13 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. S&P Global’s payout ratio is currently 29.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on S&P Global from $600.00 to $585.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com downgraded S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. 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 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $590.23.

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.