First Manhattan CO. LLC. Sells 4,748 Shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

First Manhattan CO. LLC. decreased its position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 629,877 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 4,748 shares during the quarter. S&P Global makes up 0.9% of First Manhattan CO. LLC.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. First Manhattan CO. LLC. owned 0.20% of S&P Global worth $315,918,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth about $1,725,084,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $527,207,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in S&P Global by 71,024.1% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 619,491 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $308,525,000 after buying an additional 618,620 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings 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 buying an additional 525,347 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BlueSpruce Investments LP purchased a new position in S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $178,858,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Sally Moore sold 500 shares of the firm'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 transaction of $255,215.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,131 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,619,016.33. This trade represents a 8.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

S&P Global Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of SPGI stock traded down $0.17 on Friday, reaching $507.44. 941,827 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,223,689. S&P Global Inc. has a 52 week low of $419.49 and a 52 week high of $545.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $155.63 billion, a PE ratio of 41.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.23. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $486.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $501.59.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $4.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.23 by $0.14. S&P Global had a return on equity of 14.33% and a net margin of 27.12%. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.72 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.01 EPS. S&P Global's quarterly revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 28th. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio is currently 30.16%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI raised their price target on S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Bank of America assumed coverage on S&P Global in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on S&P Global from $607.00 to $627.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on S&P Global from $616.00 to $589.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Mizuho began coverage on S&P Global in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $599.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.