Norden Group LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Norden Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 7.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,959 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 276 shares during the quarter. Norden Group LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,133,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 60.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,007,748 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $236,055,000 after acquiring an additional 380,391 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter valued at $81,798,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 43.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 389,627 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $91,266,000 after purchasing an additional 117,514 shares during the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY lifted its position in Morningstar by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,326,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $310,745,000 after acquiring an additional 98,191 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Morningstar by 76.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 206,133 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,284,000 after buying an additional 89,099 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Price Performance

NASDAQ MORN traded up $0.74 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $284.57. 25,009 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 127,157. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $178.00 and a 1 year high of $316.05. The company has a market cap of $12.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.34 and a beta of 1.15. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $301.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $281.29.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.73 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $542.80 million for the quarter. Morningstar had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 21.79%.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is 32.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MORN has been the topic of several analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. TheStreet raised Morningstar from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd.

Insider Activity

In other Morningstar news, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.81, for a total transaction of $383,512.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 44,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 6,926 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $279.39, for a total value of $1,935,055.14. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 10,934,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,055,125,738.54. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.81, for a total transaction of $383,512.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 44,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 95,544 shares of company stock worth $27,733,515. 37.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morningstar 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.