First Bank & Trust Raises Holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

First Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 4,024 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the quarter. First Bank & Trust’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $2,004,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Headinvest LLC grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 2.0% during the third quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 997 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $515,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 4.2% during the third quarter. EWA LLC now owns 498 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 1.3% during the third quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $788,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 1.2% during the third quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC now owns 1,789 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $872,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 3.2% during the third quarter. Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. now owns 705 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Price Performance

Shares of SPGI opened at $542.61 on Thursday. S&P Global Inc. has a twelve month low of $407.69 and a twelve month high of $545.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $509.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $508.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.02 billion, a PE ratio of 43.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 14.33%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.13 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current 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 given a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. This is an increase from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on SPGI shares. Citigroup started coverage on S&P Global in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price target on S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on S&P Global from $536.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on S&P Global from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $590.23.

S&P Global 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.