Aptus Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in S&P Global Inc. $SPGI

Key Points

• Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global Inc. by 36.2% during the 1st quarter, owning a total of 5,392 shares valued at approximately $2.74 million.
• Recent analyst ratings show a consensus of "Buy" with a target price of $611.69, indicating positive market sentiment towards S&P Global.
• S&P Global reported earnings of $4.43 per share in its latest quarterly results, beating analyst expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.96 to be paid in September.

Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 36.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,392 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,432 shares during the quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in S&P Global were worth $2,739,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $14,040,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in S&P Global by 20.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,210 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,139,000 after buying an additional 708 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in S&P Global by 59.7% in the first quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,909 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,478,000 after buying an additional 1,088 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in S&P Global by 1.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 86,794 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $44,102,000 after buying an additional 1,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alaethes Wealth LLC bought a new stake in S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $2,029,000. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SPGI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on S&P Global from $575.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays increased their target price on S&P Global from $610.00 to $620.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on S&P Global from $595.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Oppenheimer increased their target price on S&P Global from $567.00 to $592.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on S&P Global from $616.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $611.69.

S&P Global Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of S&P Global stock traded up $3.49 during trading on Friday, hitting $555.93. 1,060,179 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,224,779. The firm has a market cap of $169.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. S&P Global Inc. has a 52-week low of $427.14 and a 52-week high of $579.05. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $534.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $513.79.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The business services provider reported $4.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.18 by $0.25. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.65 billion. S&P Global had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 27.30%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.04 earnings per share. S&P Global has set its FY 2025 guidance at 17.000-17.250 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.54%.

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.