S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 1.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 355,808 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,985 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of S&P Global worth $180,787,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SPGI. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of S&P Global by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,589,982 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,273,264,000 after purchasing an additional 116,208 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth $1,725,084,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in S&P Global by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,276,043 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,631,568,000 after buying an additional 525,347 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in S&P Global by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,071,407 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,529,653,000 after buying an additional 357,790 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in S&P Global by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,345,377 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,162,979,000 after buying an additional 145,434 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

S&P Global Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of SPGI opened at $531.02 on Friday. S&P Global Inc. has a 52-week low of $427.14 and a 52-week high of $545.39. The stock has a market cap of $162.86 billion, a PE ratio of 41.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 1.19. The firm's fifty day moving average is $511.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $504.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.23 by $0.14. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.27% and a return on equity of 14.68%. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.01 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.16%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SPGI shares. Mizuho began coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $599.00 target price on the stock. Argus upgraded S&P Global to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on S&P Global from $567.00 to $592.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on S&P Global from $627.00 to $632.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $593.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Sally Moore sold 500 shares of the 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 owned 5,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,619,016.33. This trade 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 can be accessed through this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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