Joseph D. Mansueto Sells 1,246 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,246 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.52, for a total transaction of $381,923.92. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 9,427,836 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,889,820,290.72. The trade was a 0.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ:MORN opened at $306.55 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $12.95 billion, a PE ratio of 40.50 and a beta of 0.99. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $250.34 and a twelve month high of $365.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company’s 50 day moving average is $290.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $315.66.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $581.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $589.07 million. Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MORN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Morningstar by 278.2% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 208 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 3,838 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,151,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 19.6% in the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 855 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 11.1% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 109,257 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $32,763,000 after purchasing an additional 10,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the first quarter worth $523,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

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.