UBS Group Boosts S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) Price Target to $640.00

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) had its price target boosted by UBS Group from $610.00 to $640.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on SPGI. Citigroup started coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Friday, December 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $600.00 to $585.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective 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. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $576.00 to $590.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $590.23.

S&P Global Price Performance

SPGI stock opened at $536.21 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $509.53 and a 200-day moving average of $508.60. S&P Global has a 12-month low of $407.69 and a 12-month high of $545.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $165.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.42, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its quarterly 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 prior year, the business posted $3.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that S&P Global will post 17.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th will be paid a $0.96 dividend. This is a boost from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 26th. S&P Global’s payout ratio is presently 29.47%.

Institutional Trading of S&P Global

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. 87.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.