Kestra Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Kestra Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 25.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,900 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 652 shares during the quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $947,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 77.1% during the 3rd quarter. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. now owns 62 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

S&P Global Price Performance

SPGI stock opened at $543.08 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. S&P Global Inc. has a 52 week low of $407.69 and a 52 week high of $545.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $508.53 and its 200 day moving average is $508.17. The firm has a market cap of $168.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 posted $3.13 EPS. Research analysts predict that S&P Global Inc. will post 15.34 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPGI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research note on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer lowered 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 note on Friday, January 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of S&P Global from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of S&P Global from $536.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $590.23.

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.