Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Redburn Atlantic cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $352.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morningstar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $360.67.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of MORN stock traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $354.30. 154,356 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 119,827. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $336.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $315.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Morningstar has a 52-week low of $269.51 and a 52-week high of $359.50. The stock has a market cap of $15.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.80 and a beta of 1.18.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.01). Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%. The firm had revenue of $569.40 million during the quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.88, for a total transaction of $248,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,261,339.20. The trade was a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.22, for a total transaction of $3,219,003.64. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,738,224 shares in the company, valued at $3,814,431,929.28. This trade represents a 0.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 58,019 shares of company stock valued at $19,531,012. 39.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,259 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the period. Legacy Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 1.6% in the second quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 3,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $895,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV raised its stake in shares of Morningstar by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV now owns 2,254 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $719,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 754 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Morningstar by 38.6% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 183 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. 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.