Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Acquires 23,903 Shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 348,221 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 23,903 shares during the period. S&P Global comprises 0.5% of Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.11% of S&P Global worth $173,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in S&P Global by 52.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 658,766 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $328,632,000 after buying an additional 225,370 shares during the period. GDS Wealth Management lifted 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 worth $14,134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,801 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 27,598 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $14,198,000 after purchasing an additional 3,093 shares during the period. Eastern Bank grew its holdings in S&P Global by 3.1% during 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,170,000. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on SPGI. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on S&P Global from $590.00 to $580.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on S&P Global from $617.00 to $633.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, 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 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, S&P Global currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $590.23.

S&P Global Stock Down 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE SPGI opened at $497.35 on Monday. S&P Global Inc. has a 12-month low of $407.69 and a 12-month high of $545.39. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $515.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $511.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.08 billion, a PE ratio of 40.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 in the prior year, the company earned $3.13 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.77%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 26th. This is a positive change from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. S&P Global’s payout ratio is 31.09%.

S&P Global 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.