Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Position in S&P Global Inc. $SPGI

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group boosted its stake in S&P Global by 1.5% to 344,476 shares (about $180.0M), representing roughly 0.11% of the company.
• S&P Global beat Q1 estimates with EPS of $4.97 vs. $4.82 and revenue of $4.17B (up 10.4%), and set FY2026 guidance of $19.40–19.65 EPS while analysts' consensus and the MarketBeat rating remain a "Buy" (average target ~$550.63).
• Insider buying has picked up recently: CEOs Catherine R. Clay and Martina Cheung bought 2,500 and 2,322 shares respectively, with insiders acquiring 5,974 shares (~$2.58M) over the past 90 days.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 344,476 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 4,983 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of S&P Global worth $180,020,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. YANKCOM Partnership raised its position in S&P Global by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 259 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $135,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. LeConte Wealth Management LLC raised its position in S&P Global by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. LeConte Wealth Management LLC now owns 511 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC raised its position in S&P Global by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 632 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $330,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. raised its position in S&P Global by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 148 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Forbes J M & Co. LLP raised its position in S&P Global by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Forbes J M & Co. LLP now owns 627 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $305,000 after buying an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

S&P Global Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of S&P Global stock opened at $423.87 on Wednesday. S&P Global Inc. has a 1 year low of $381.61 and a 1 year high of $579.05. The firm has a market cap of $125.46 billion, a PE ratio of 26.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $430.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $472.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $4.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.82 by $0.15. S&P Global had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 30.37%.The firm had revenue of $4.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.37 EPS. The business's revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. S&P Global has set its FY 2026 guidance at 19.400-19.650 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that S&P Global Inc. will post 19.58 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on SPGI. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on S&P Global from $530.00 to $525.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered S&P Global from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Evercore decreased their target price on S&P Global from $625.00 to $560.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on S&P Global from $620.00 to $550.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, S&P Global currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $550.63.

Insider Activity

In other S&P Global news, CEO Catherine R. Clay bought 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $431.39 per share, with a total value of $1,078,475.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,500 shares in the company, valued at $1,078,475. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Martina Cheung purchased 2,322 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 29th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $429.93 per share, with a total value of $998,297.46. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 27,518 shares in the company, valued at $11,830,813.74. This trade represents a 9.22% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders acquired a total of 5,974 shares of company stock valued at $2,576,775 in the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

S&P Global News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting S&P Global this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Insider buying: CEO Catherine R. Clay purchased 2,500 shares at about $431.39, a high-profile insider purchase that signals management confidence. CEO Catherine Clay Buys 2,500 Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Director purchase: Director Robert Edward Jr. Moritz acquired 1,152 shares at roughly $434.03, reinforcing insider accumulation. Insider buys often support investor sentiment. Director Robert Moritz Acquires Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst lift: Mizuho raised its price target to $554 and reiterated an "outperform" view, adding analyst support for upside versus current levels. Mizuho Raises SPGI Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Management outreach: S&P Global presented at Barclays’ Americas Select Conference (transcript available) — useful for incremental detail on strategy and growth but no new guidance. Barclays Conference Transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Ratings arm activity: S&P Global Ratings revised Municipality Finance Plc’s outlook to negative (rating remains AA+). This is a ratings action for a separate issuer and does not change SPGI’s corporate profile, but highlights ongoing ratings activity. Ratings Outlook Change for MuniFin
• Negative Sentiment: Sector/market pressure: broader “AI panic” and risk-off flows have weighed on financial and information-service names today, creating downward pressure despite company-specific positives. That macro/technical stress is the likeliest driver of the intraday decline. AI Panic Hits Wall Street

About S&P Global

S&P Global is a leading provider of financial information, analytics and benchmark indices that serve investors, issuers, corporations and public institutions worldwide. The company operates through well-known businesses that include credit ratings, market intelligence and index licensing, as well as commodity and energy information services. Its products and services are used to assess creditworthiness, inform investment decisions, construct and track benchmark portfolios, and support risk and commodity market analysis.

S&P Global Ratings provides independent credit ratings, research and data used by fixed income investors and capital market participants to evaluate issuer and transaction risk.

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