Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Grows Stock Position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 105.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,258 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 16,569 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in S&P Global were worth $16,066,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in S&P Global by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 658,766 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $328,632,000 after acquiring an additional 225,370 shares during the period. Eastern Bank lifted its holdings in S&P Global by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 50,157 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $24,980,000 after buying an additional 1,530 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of S&P Global by 19.1% in the 4th quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 37,746 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $18,799,000 after buying an additional 6,051 shares during the last quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new stake in shares of S&P Global in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,170,000. Finally, American Trust increased its stake in shares of S&P Global by 76.2% during the third quarter. American Trust now owns 2,518 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,301,000 after buying an additional 1,089 shares during the period. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

S&P Global Stock Performance

SPGI traded down $1.14 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $478.86. 1,531,067 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,224,669. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.29 billion, a PE ratio of 38.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.26. The company's 50-day moving average is $491.09 and its 200 day moving average is $502.59. S&P Global Inc. has a 52 week low of $408.84 and a 52 week high of $545.39.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 14.33%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.13 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.80%. This is a boost from S&P Global's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $618.00 to $565.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of S&P Global from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $591.86.

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.