Insider Selling: Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Sells 9,062 Shares of 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 transaction of $2,927,297.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,085,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,257,959,766.78. This trade represents a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN opened at $313.72 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $281.37 and a 52-week high of $365.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $327.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $330.03. The company has a market capitalization of $13.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.44 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is 24.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,626 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,259 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,798 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% during the 4th 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 last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.