Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto Sells 1,716 Shares

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total value of $562,659.24. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,151,120 shares in the company, valued at $3,328,450,736.80. This trade represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Morningstar Trading Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ MORN traded down $1.21 on Tuesday, hitting $325.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 85,385 shares, compared to its average volume of 116,817. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $269.51 and a 52-week 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 simple moving average is $338.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $328.64. The firm has a market cap of $13.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.03 and a beta of 1.20.

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 is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Morningstar in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective on the stock. Redburn Atlantic cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MORN. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new stake in Morningstar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $391,000. Creative Planning lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,934 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $868,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Morningstar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $530,000. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,034 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $649,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 5,972 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,906,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.