Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC Has $7.94 Million Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,731 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 734 shares during the period. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Morningstar worth $7,940,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MORN. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 2.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 191,765 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $61,196,000 after buying an additional 5,045 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its stake in Morningstar by 102.1% during the 3rd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,524 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $486,000 after purchasing an additional 770 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Morningstar by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 6,318 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 915 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in Morningstar by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 21,342 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,811,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 492.7% during the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 735 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total transaction of $562,659.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,151,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,328,450,736.80. This trade represents a 0.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097. Corporate insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Performance

NASDAQ MORN opened at $305.26 on Wednesday. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $278.64 and a twelve month high of $365.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap of $13.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.33 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $315.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $328.15.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MORN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

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.