Westpac Banking Corp Buys 1,774 Shares of S&P Global Inc. $SPGI

Westpac Banking Corp grew its stake in shares of S&P Global Inc. (NYSE:SPGI) by 48.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,421 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,774 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in S&P Global were worth $2,208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SPGI. Joseph Group Capital Management bought a new position in S&P Global in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. North Star Investment Management Corp. raised its position in shares of S&P Global by 134.6% in the 4th quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 61 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Palladiem LLC bought a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Swiss RE Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of S&P Global during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.17% of the company’s stock.

S&P Global Stock Performance

NYSE SPGI opened at $431.10 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $422.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $425.46. The stock has a market cap of $127.09 billion, a PE ratio of 26.32, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.07. S&P Global Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $381.61 and a fifty-two week high of $559.44. 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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company had revenue of $4.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter 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. On average, equities analysts expect that S&P Global Inc. will post 17.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

S&P Global Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 26th will be issued a $0.97 dividend. 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 presently 23.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SPGI shares. Daiwa Securities Group decreased their price objective on shares of S&P Global from $490.00 to $485.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on S&P Global from $521.00 to $513.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on S&P Global from $454.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research cut S&P Global from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on S&P Global from $560.00 to $510.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Eighteen 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, S&P Global has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.