Joseph D. Mansueto Sells 4,080 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 4,080 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.46, for a total value of $1,319,716.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,072,938 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,258,192,525.48. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $313.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.44 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $327.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $330.17. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $281.37 and a twelve month high of $365.00.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $580.81 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 178.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 101.7% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Company Profile

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.