Oak Thistle LLC Grows Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Oak Thistle LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 194.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,276 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,826 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 73.8% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 109.9% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,115 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,513,000 after acquiring an additional 2,678 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 44.4% during the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,827 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,499,000 after purchasing an additional 3,638 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in Morningstar by 229.6% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 412 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Morningstar by 0.4% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,099,502 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $325,288,000 after purchasing an additional 4,822 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.88, for a total value of $248,910.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,840 shares in the company, valued at $4,261,339.20. This represents a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total value of $1,137,332.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,304 shares in the company, valued at $6,106,235.52. The trade was a 15.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 51,661 shares of company stock valued at $17,723,744 in the last ninety days. 37.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Morningstar Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of MORN opened at $324.58 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $13.92 billion, a PE ratio of 42.88 and a beta of 1.20. 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 50 day simple moving average of $342.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $326.08. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $269.51 and a 1 year high of $365.00.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This is an increase from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on MORN. UBS Group initiated coverage on Morningstar in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

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.