Charles E. “Ed” Haldeman, Jr.

Chairman of the Board

Dear Fellow Shareholder: 

On behalf of your Board of Directors, I am pleased to report S&P Global once again created value for you.

Dividends paid and share repurchases during 2018 totaled more than $2 billion. Entering 2019, the Board increased our dividend by 14%, marking the 46th consecutive year of annual dividend increases. With the year-end stock market correction, the company’s total return to shareholders in 2018 was 1.4%. That beat the 4.4% decline in the S&P 500. But it trailed the median return of our peer group. Looking back further, our total return over five- and 10-year periods exceeded both the S&P 500 and our peer group.

S&P Global also made significant strides preparing for the years ahead.

The management team, working closely with the Board, has created a strategic plan that expresses S&P Global’s ability to Power the Markets of the Future. This conveys the company’s belief that its future success depends on delivering the essential intelligence our customers require to make decisions that are fundamental to the healthy evolution and expansion of global capital and commodities markets.

Realizing this vision depends on the company’s capacity to not just adapt but thrive in a world overflowing with data and technology. That is why we held our 2018 annual Board and Operating Committee strategic planning meeting in San Francisco. During this time, we met with and heard from some of Silicon Valley’s most successful and promising technology companies. These innovators offered insights about the capabilities, characteristics and cultures S&P Global needs to foster in order to achieve its vision, and validated our approach to technology, innovation and high ethical standards.

As we enter 2019, we maintain a long-term view. The Board and Operating Committee make strategic, operational and corporate governance decisions not on a quarter-to-quarter basis, but over a multi-year time horizon. Monthly market movements do not distract us; rather, a clear long-term strategy guides us. We have, and continue to have, many robust discussions about how best to position the company for success, including conversations about talent management and environmental, social and governance risk-related matters.

I want to thank my fellow Directors for their insights and contributions throughout the year. We are fortunate to have very engaged members of our Board, who bring a wide range of opinions, backgrounds and perspectives to our discussions. Their experience and counsel are invaluable to the management team and me. It’s an honor to serve with them.

And it’s a privilege to serve a company that plays a central role helping investors, companies and governments make informed decisions vital to their business.

S&P Global’s ability to create valuable insights is an enormous source of pride and it is the key to understanding why we approach the markets of the future from a position of great strength.

Sincerely,