S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Shares Sold by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC cut its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,330,426 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 118,114 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $662,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Headinvest LLC lifted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 2.0% in the third quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 997 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $515,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. EWA LLC lifted its position in shares of S&P Global by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 498 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $788,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in S&P Global by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,034 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $515,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Personal CFO Solutions LLC increased its stake in S&P Global by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 674 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $336,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

S&P Global Stock Performance

SPGI stock opened at $502.33 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $515.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $510.14. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $407.69 and a fifty-two week high of $545.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $157.65 billion, a PE ratio of 40.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a return on equity of 14.33% and a net margin of 27.12%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.13 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th were 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%. This is an increase from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s payout ratio is 31.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPGI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup started coverage on S&P Global in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com cut S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of S&P Global from $590.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Mizuho began coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $617.00 to $633.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, S&P Global presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $590.86.

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.