S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) Given New $565.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) had its price target reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $618.00 to $565.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on SPGI. StockNews.com downgraded S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective 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. Bank of America began coverage on shares of S&P Global in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho started coverage on shares of S&P Global in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of S&P Global from $599.00 to $608.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $593.71.

S&P Global Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SPGI opened at $464.47 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $501.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $505.32. S&P Global has a 1-year low of $407.69 and a 1-year high of $545.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $145.77 billion, a PE ratio of 37.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.26.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.13 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that S&P Global will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On S&P Global

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SPGI. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of S&P Global by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 658,766 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $328,632,000 after purchasing an additional 225,370 shares during the period. Eastern Bank increased its stake in S&P Global by 3.1% in the fourth 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. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its position in S&P Global by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 37,746 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $18,799,000 after buying an additional 6,051 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new stake in S&P Global in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,170,000. Finally, American Trust grew its holdings in S&P Global by 76.2% in the 3rd quarter. American Trust now owns 2,518 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,301,000 after buying an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

About S&P Global

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.