Handelsbanken Fonder AB Buys 400 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,372 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $2,146,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Morningstar by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,201,708 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $383,489,000 after acquiring an additional 102,206 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Morningstar by 0.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 950,512 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $303,327,000 after buying an additional 5,158 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 804,293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $256,666,000 after acquiring an additional 28,698 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $222,115,000 after purchasing an additional 85,098 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Morningstar by 2.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 497,411 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $158,772,000 after buying an additional 10,437 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total transaction of $1,137,332.24. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,106,235.52. This represents a 15.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 8,393 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total transaction of $2,751,980.77. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,096,098 shares in the company, valued at $3,310,409,573.22. This trade represents a 0.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 31,499 shares of company stock worth $10,373,523. 39.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Morningstar Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $323.21 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $13.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.70 and a beta of 1.20. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $281.37 and a 52-week high of $365.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $329.57 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $330.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.455 dividend. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 17th.

About Morningstar

Morningstar, Inc provides independent investment insights in the United States, Asia. Australia, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates in five segments: Morningstar Data and Analytics; PitchBook; Morningstar Wealth; Morningstar Credit; and Morningstar Retirement.