Diligent Investors LLC Trims Stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Diligent Investors LLC cut its position in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 6.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,277 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 550 shares during the period. S&P Global makes up 0.9% of Diligent Investors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Diligent Investors LLC’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $4,122,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eagle Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $8,214,000. EPG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth about $914,000. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in S&P Global by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 2,308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,150,000 after buying an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its position in S&P Global by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $544,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Crestline Management LP purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,783,000. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

S&P Global Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SPGI opened at $502.40 on Wednesday. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $419.49 and a fifty-two week high of $545.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $154.09 billion, a PE ratio of 40.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $487.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $501.72.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.23 by $0.14. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 14.33%. The company had revenue of $3.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.72 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.01 EPS. S&P Global’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be given a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. S&P Global’s payout ratio is 30.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on SPGI shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on S&P Global from $618.00 to $565.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Mizuho initiated coverage on S&P Global in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on S&P Global in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of S&P Global from $607.00 to $627.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $592.71.

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.