Merit Financial Group LLC Raises Holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Free Report) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,070 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,982 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in S&P Global were worth $9,996,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SPGI. First National Corp MA ADV grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 0.9% in the third quarter. First National Corp MA ADV now owns 2,344 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,211,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of S&P Global by 25.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. now owns 100 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. grew its stake in shares of S&P Global by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 1,404 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $725,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Headinvest LLC increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 997 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $515,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EWA LLC raised its position in shares of S&P Global by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 498 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $254,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. 87.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

S&P Global Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE SPGI traded down $3.46 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $501.70. 1,723,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,055,581. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $155.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.28, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50 day moving average of $504.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $500.78. S&P Global Inc. has a 52-week low of $407.69 and a 52-week high of $533.29.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The business services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.64 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $3.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.43 billion. S&P Global had a net margin of 25.80% and a return on equity of 13.72%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.21 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that S&P Global Inc. will post 15.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SPGI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on S&P Global from $600.00 to $585.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on S&P Global from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Oppenheimer decreased 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 report on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating and a $599.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of S&P Global in a report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $600.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $583.62.

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.