D.A. Davidson & CO. Lowers Stock Holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

D.A. Davidson & CO. lessened its stake in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 0.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 110,512 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 730 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in S&P Global were worth $56,152,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at $1,725,084,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 60,982.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,139,101 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,086,877,000 after purchasing an additional 2,135,599 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth $527,207,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in S&P Global by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,276,043 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,631,568,000 after purchasing an additional 525,347 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth $238,503,000. Institutional investors own 87.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at S&P Global

In other news, EVP Sally Moore sold 500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $510.43, for a total value of $255,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,131 shares in the company, valued at $2,619,016.33. This represents a 8.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

S&P Global Stock Performance

NYSE SPGI traded up $5.38 on Friday, reaching $531.02. 578,304 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,233,475. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $427.14 and a fifty-two week high of $545.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market cap of $162.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $512.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $504.30.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.23 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.72 billion. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.01 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 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, September 10th. Investors 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 yield of 0.72%. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group lifted their price objective on S&P Global from $555.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Bank of America started coverage on S&P Global in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price objective on the stock. Argus upgraded shares of S&P Global to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Mizuho assumed coverage on S&P Global in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $599.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of S&P Global from $616.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, S&P Global currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $593.93.

S&P Global Company 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.