S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Shares Sold by Sawgrass Asset Management LLC

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 19,395 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,139 shares during the quarter. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $9,659,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,868,375 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,581,580,000 after purchasing an additional 292,436 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,473,774 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,332,016,000 after acquiring an additional 113,146 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,965,369 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,081,830,000 after acquiring an additional 369,598 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,713,617 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,401,909,000 after acquiring an additional 28,458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in S&P Global by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,936,697 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,000,536,000 after acquiring an additional 26,300 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPGI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of S&P Global from $617.00 to $633.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup began coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer decreased their price target 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. StockNews.com raised shares of S&P Global from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of S&P Global from $600.00 to $585.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $586.85.

S&P Global Trading Down 1.8 %

SPGI opened at $530.93 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $506.13 and its 200-day moving average is $506.36. S&P Global Inc. has a 52-week low of $407.69 and a 52-week high of $542.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a net margin of 25.80% and a return on equity of 13.72%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.13 EPS. Analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 15.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.96 per share. This is an increase from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. S&P Global’s payout ratio is 32.13%.

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.