Fayez Sarofim & Co Purchases 34,808 Shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Fayez Sarofim & Co increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,562,279 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 34,808 shares during the quarter. S&P Global comprises about 1.9% of Fayez Sarofim & Co’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Fayez Sarofim & Co’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $783,150,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. grew its stake in shares of S&P Global by 131.0% in the fourth quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 700.0% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 72 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new position in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Stock Performance

Shares of SPGI opened at $462.55 on Monday. S&P Global Inc. has a 12 month low of $407.69 and a 12 month high of $545.39. The company has a market capitalization of $145.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.45, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $499.33 and a 200 day moving average of $504.47. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.36. S&P Global had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 14.33%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.96 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 26th. This is a boost from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. S&P Global’s payout ratio is 31.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SPGI has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group boosted their price objective on S&P Global from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of S&P Global in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $633.00 to $607.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $618.00 to $565.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, StockNews.com cut S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $591.86.

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.