Short Interest in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Grows By 16.6%

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) was the recipient of a large 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 volume of 1,270,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on SPGI. Citigroup began coverage on S&P Global in a report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on S&P Global from $605.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Evercore ISI upped their target price 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. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on S&P Global from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $587.92.

S&P Global Stock Performance

SPGI traded down $2.55 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $539.77. 973,325 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,209,243. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $507.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $507.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $167.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. S&P Global has a 1-year low of $407.69 and a 1-year high of $545.39.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a return on equity of 13.72% and a net margin of 25.80%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that S&P Global will post 15.34 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be given a dividend of $0.96 per share. This is an increase from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On S&P Global

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SPGI. Trust Point Inc. increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Headinvest LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Headinvest LLC now owns 997 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $515,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 498 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $254,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its holdings in S&P Global by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,544 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $788,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 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 purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.