S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) Hits New 52-Week High on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $542.00 and last traded at $531.59, with a volume of 260017 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $515.30.

The business services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 25.80%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.13 EPS.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPGI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup began coverage on S&P Global in a report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on 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. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on S&P Global from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $536.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, S&P Global has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $584.54.

Institutional Trading of S&P Global

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of S&P Global in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in S&P Global by 77.1% in the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 62 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average is $505.68 and its 200 day moving average is $506.00. The firm has a market cap of $164.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94.

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.