Morningstar, Inc. $MORN Stock Acquired by VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al increased its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 23.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 11,600 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,200 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $2,204,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MORN. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in Morningstar by 5.4% in the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,423 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $841,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Morningstar by 12.8% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 662 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 36.3% during the 3rd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,977 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 527 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter worth $279,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter valued at $106,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.8%

MORN opened at $236.71 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.14 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $206.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $186.40. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $141.49 and a twelve month high of $242.58.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.44. Morningstar had a return on equity of 45.17% and a net margin of 17.00%. The company had revenue of $672.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $664.75 million.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Morningstar from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Morningstar from $230.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In related news, Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 5,659 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.84, for a total transaction of $1,238,415.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 7,938,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,737,193,937.28. This represents a 0.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 71,000 shares of company stock valued at $14,723,566 in the last ninety days. 38.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Morningstar Company Profile

Morningstar, Inc is a global provider of independent investment research, data, and financial technology. The company serves asset managers, financial advisors, institutions, retirement plans, and individual investors with information designed to support investment analysis and decision-making.

Its products and services include research and ratings on mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, stocks, bonds, and other investments; portfolio analysis and planning tools; investment-management and advisory services; and software and data solutions for financial professionals and institutions.