Smart Money Group LLC Takes Position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Smart Money Group LLC bought a new stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 641 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $282,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. D.B. Root & Company LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC now owns 662 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of S&P Global by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 714 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of S&P Global by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,356 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $598,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. increased its stake in shares of S&P Global by 31.2% in the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 101 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky increased its stake in shares of S&P Global by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,487 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SPGI traded up $0.76 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $416.96. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,221,932 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,368,144. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $340.49 and a fifty-two week high of $461.16. The company has a market capitalization of $130.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $423.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $418.76.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The business services provider reported $4.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.68 by $0.33. S&P Global had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 22.01%. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.39 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 14.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.91 per share. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 29th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPGI has been the subject of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $480.00 to $483.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on S&P Global from $480.00 to $482.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Erste Group Bank reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of S&P Global in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Raymond James lifted their target price on S&P Global from $422.00 to $452.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $462.60.

Insider Activity

In other S&P Global news, CEO Douglas L. Peterson sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $424.74, for a total value of $2,548,440.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 162,530 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,032,992.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About S&P Global

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.