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

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.03, for a total value of $2,927,297.86. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,085,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,257,959,766.78. The trade was a 0.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Morningstar Stock Down 2.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $311.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $281.37 and a 12-month high of $365.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $328.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $329.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.10 and a beta of 1.20.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $580.81 million. 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. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This is a positive change from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MORN. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Morningstar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,626 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Morningstar by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 285 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $96,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Morningstar by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,259 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in Morningstar by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,798 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $605,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday.

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.