CX Institutional Raises Stock Position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

CX Institutional increased its position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 519.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,192 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 9,385 shares during the period. CX Institutional's holdings in S&P Global were worth $5,686,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SPGI. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 37,746 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $18,799,000 after purchasing an additional 6,051 shares in the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth approximately $14,040,000. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC now owns 11,499 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,727,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in S&P Global by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 153,466 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $77,009,000 after purchasing an additional 1,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,033 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,503,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

S&P Global Price Performance

Shares of SPGI stock traded down $4.84 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $501.03. The stock had a trading volume of 1,343,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,223,688. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $497.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $504.09. 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 Inc. has a 12 month low of $427.14 and a 12 month high of $545.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.67 billion, a PE ratio of 40.57, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $3.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $4.01 earnings per share. S&P Global's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 28th were paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 28th. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Sally Moore sold 500 shares of S&P Global stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $510.43, for a total value of $255,215.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,619,016.33. The trade was a 8.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on SPGI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on S&P Global from $618.00 to $565.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of S&P Global in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $599.00 price target on the stock. Argus upgraded shares of S&P Global to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $555.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $616.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $592.71.

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.