Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Position Trimmed by Polen Capital Management LLC

Polen Capital Management LLC cut its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 37.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,906 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,290 shares during the quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,315,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MORN. Nicholas Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 115.2% in the fourth quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 56,630 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $19,071,000 after buying an additional 30,320 shares during the period. Glenview Trust co acquired a new stake in Morningstar during the 4th quarter worth about $227,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Morningstar by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,269 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter valued at about $547,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 1,821 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $613,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,280 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.57, for a total transaction of $410,329.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,130,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,247,495,275.46. This represents a 0.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last three months, insiders sold 59,542 shares of company stock worth $18,769,523. Corporate insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of Morningstar stock opened at $286.94 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $12.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.90 and a beta of 1.23. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $318.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $328.85. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $278.64 and a 52-week high of $365.00. 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 (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $591.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $580.81 million. Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on MORN. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

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.