Short Interest in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) Expands By 24.6%

S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,450,000 shares, a growth of 24.6% from the October 15th total of 3,570,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,110,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.0 days.

S&P Global Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of SPGI traded down $5.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $505.13. 244,652 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,205,140. S&P Global has a 12 month low of $401.79 and a 12 month high of $533.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market cap of $156.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $510.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $478.13.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The business services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.64 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $3.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.43 billion. S&P Global had a net margin of 25.80% and a return on equity of 13.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.21 EPS. Research analysts forecast that S&P Global will post 15.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SPGI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James cut S&P Global from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Evercore ISI began coverage on S&P Global in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of S&P Global from $589.00 to $564.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective 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, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $500.00 to $552.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $571.31.

Institutional Trading of S&P Global

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC raised its stake in S&P Global by 6.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,965,369 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,081,830,000 after buying an additional 369,598 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 5.3% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 5,793,751 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,464,951,000 after acquiring an additional 291,712 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of S&P Global by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,826,597 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,260,665,000 after purchasing an additional 29,227 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in S&P Global by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,713,617 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,401,909,000 after purchasing an additional 28,458 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in S&P Global by 13.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,516,811 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,115,697,000 after purchasing an additional 298,645 shares during the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

S&P Global Company 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.