Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Raises Holdings in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 84,001 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $37,464,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group lifted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 64.1% in the fourth quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 64 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in S&P Global in the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 141.7% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

S&P Global Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:SPGI traded up $1.32 on Wednesday, hitting $491.01. 183,982 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,243,891. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $463.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $440.68. S&P Global Inc. has a 52 week low of $340.49 and a 52 week high of $502.95. The company has a market cap of $153.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $4.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.67 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $3.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. S&P Global had a return on equity of 13.03% and a net margin of 25.03%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.12 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 14.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $3.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.81%.

Insider Activity at S&P Global

In other news, EVP Steven J. Kemps sold 2,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total value of $1,327,185.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $715,205.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Steven J. Kemps sold 2,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total value of $1,327,185.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 1,455 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $715,205.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Edouard Tavernier sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.55, for a total value of $245,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,217 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,496,816.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 17,862 shares of company stock worth $8,645,727 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on SPGI. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $486.00 to $540.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $530.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of S&P Global to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of S&P Global from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, S&P Global presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $530.75.

S&P Global Profile

S&P Global Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics, and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity, and automotive markets. It operates through S&P Global Market Intelligence, S&P Global Ratings, S&P Global Commodity Insights, S&P Global Mobility, S&P Dow Jones Indices, and S&P Global Engineering Solutions segments.