S&P Global Inc. $SPGI Shares Bought by Willis Investment Counsel

Willis Investment Counsel grew its holdings in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 21.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,757 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,012 shares during the quarter. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $6,824,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Joseph Group Capital Management acquired a new position in S&P Global in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. North Star Investment Management Corp. lifted its position in S&P Global by 134.6% during the fourth quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 61 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Palladiem LLC acquired a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in S&P Global in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. purchased a new stake in S&P Global in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Stock Down 1.1%

SPGI opened at $418.15 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $422.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $429.14. The company has a market cap of $123.27 billion, a PE ratio of 25.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.07. S&P Global Inc. has a 1 year low of $381.61 and a 1 year high of $565.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95.

S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The business services provider reported $4.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.81 by $0.02. S&P Global had a net margin of 31.37% and a return on equity of 17.74%. The firm had revenue of $4.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.43 earnings per share. S&P Global’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. S&P Global has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.500-17.750 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 26th will be given a dividend of $0.97 per share. This represents a $3.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 26th. S&P Global’s dividend payout ratio is 23.69%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SPGI shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $540.00 to $520.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of S&P Global from $500.00 to $535.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of S&P Global from $551.00 to $554.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of S&P Global from $575.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $550.00 to $525.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $523.59.

About S&P Global

S&P Global is a leading provider of financial information, analytics and benchmark indices that serve investors, issuers, corporations and public institutions worldwide. The company operates through well-known businesses that include credit ratings, market intelligence and index licensing, as well as commodity and energy information services. Its products and services are used to assess creditworthiness, inform investment decisions, construct and track benchmark portfolios, and support risk and commodity market analysis.

S&P Global Ratings provides independent credit ratings, research and data used by fixed income investors and capital market participants to evaluate issuer and transaction risk.