Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto Sells 9,062 Shares

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.03, for a total value of $2,927,297.86. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,085,626 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,257,959,766.78. This represents a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Morningstar Trading Down 1.0 %

MORN stock traded down $3.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $319.96. 163,147 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 117,585. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $281.37 and a 1-year 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 stock has a market capitalization of $13.72 billion, a PE ratio of 42.27 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $329.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $330.18.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.15. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. This is an increase from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Morningstar’s payout ratio is 24.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Morningstar by 178.6% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 101.7% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in Morningstar by 49.5% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th.

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.