Analyzing S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) and SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC)

SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC) and S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

SEI Investments has a beta of 0.97, meaning that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, S&P Global has a beta of 1.07, meaning that its share price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

SEI Investments pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. S&P Global pays an annual dividend of $3.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. SEI Investments pays out 18.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. S&P Global pays out 23.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. SEI Investments has raised its dividend for 34 consecutive years and S&P Global has raised its dividend for 53 consecutive years. SEI Investments is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

70.6% of SEI Investments shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.2% of S&P Global shares are held by institutional investors. 4.8% of SEI Investments shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of S&P Global shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares SEI Investments and S&P Global’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SEI Investments	28.85%	29.16%	22.68%
S&P Global	31.37%	17.74%	9.24%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for SEI Investments and S&P Global, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SEI Investments	0	1	7	0	2.88
S&P Global	0	2	18	0	2.90

SEI Investments currently has a consensus target price of $122.60, indicating a potential upside of 16.04%. S&P Global has a consensus target price of $523.59, indicating a potential upside of 29.77%. Given S&P Global’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe S&P Global is more favorable than SEI Investments.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares SEI Investments and S&P Global”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SEI Investments	$2.30 billion	5.52	$715.30 million	$5.67	18.63
S&P Global	$15.34 billion	7.76	$4.47 billion	$16.38	24.63

S&P Global has higher revenue and earnings than SEI Investments. SEI Investments is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than S&P Global, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

S&P Global beats SEI Investments on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SEI Investments

SEI Investments Company is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides wealth management, retirement and investment solutions, asset management, asset administration, investment processing outsourcing solutions, financial services, and investment advisory services to its clients. It provides its services to private banks, independent financial advisers, institutional investors, investment managers, investment advisors, wealth management organizations, corporations, retirement scheme sponsors, not-for-profit organizations, hedge fund managers, registered investment advisers, independent broker-dealers, financial planners, life insurance agents, defined-benefit schemes, defined-contribution schemes, endowments, foundations, and board-designated fund, through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm manages separate client-focused portfolios. It also launches and manages equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds, through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm invests in public equity and fixed income markets. It employs fundamental and quantitative analysis with a focus on top-down and bottom-up analysis to make its investments, through its subsidiaries. SEI Investments Company was founded in 1968 and is based in Oaks, Pennsylvania.

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. The Market Intelligence segment provides multi-asset-class data and analytics integrated with purpose-built workflow solutions. The Ratings segment is involved in credit ratings, research, and analytics, offering investors and other market participants information, ratings, and benchmarks. The Commodity Insights segment focuses on information and benchmark prices for the commodity and energy markets. The Mobility segment offers solutions serving the full automotive value chain including vehicle manufacturers, automotive suppliers, mobility service providers, retailers, consumers, and finance and insurance companies. The Engineering Solutions segment engages in advanced knowledge discovery technologies, research tools, and software-based engineering decision engines to advance innovation, maximize productivity, improve quality, and reduce risk. The company was founded by James H. McGraw and John A. Hill in 1917 and is headquartered in New York, NY.