Bank of Montreal Can Sells 84,321 Shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI)

Bank of Montreal Can trimmed its position in S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 9.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 801,123 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 84,321 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.26% of S&P Global worth $398,983,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in S&P Global during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its stake in shares of S&P Global by 131.0% during the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 67 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of S&P Global by 94.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 70 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of S&P Global by 700.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 72 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 87.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SPGI. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of S&P Global in a report on Friday, December 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of S&P Global from $595.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of S&P Global in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $599.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of S&P Global from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on S&P Global from $617.00 to $633.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, S&P Global currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $590.86.

S&P Global Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SPGI opened at $451.47 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $513.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $509.15. S&P Global Inc. has a twelve month low of $405.23 and a twelve month high of $545.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.69 billion, a PE ratio of 36.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.20.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The business services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share 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 period last year, the business posted $3.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.11 EPS for the current year.

S&P Global Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 26th were paid a $0.96 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 26th. This represents a $3.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.85%. This is an increase from S&P Global’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.91. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.09%.

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.