S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,950,000 shares, an increase of 16.6% from the January 15th total of 2,530,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,270,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.3 days.

S&P Global Price Performance

S&P Global stock traded down $6.49 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $536.21. 1,308,755 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,360,406. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $509.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $508.60. S&P Global has a 12 month low of $407.69 and a 12 month 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 firm has a market cap of $165.05 billion, a PE ratio of 43.42, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 EPS 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 last year, the firm posted $3.13 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that S&P Global will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be issued a $0.96 dividend. This represents a $3.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. This is an increase from S&P Global's previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. S&P Global's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.47%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SPGI. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on S&P Global from $617.00 to $633.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on S&P Global from $536.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. UBS Group increased their target price on S&P Global from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $590.23.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On S&P Global

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 52.0% in 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 purchasing an additional 225,370 shares in the last quarter. GDS Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. GDS Wealth Management now owns 27,358 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $14,134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,801 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 27,598 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $14,198,000 after purchasing an additional 3,093 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank boosted its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 50,157 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $24,980,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,170,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company's stock.

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.