Joseph D. Mansueto Sells 1,716 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total value of $562,659.24. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,151,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,328,450,736.80. The trade was a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Morningstar Stock Performance

Shares of Morningstar stock opened at $325.37 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.98 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50-day moving average of $338.10 and a 200 day moving average of $328.79. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $269.51 and a 12 month high of $365.00.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar’s payout ratio is 24.04%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 2.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 497,411 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $158,772,000 after acquiring an additional 10,437 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Morningstar by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 191,765 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $61,196,000 after purchasing an additional 5,045 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Morningstar by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,843 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,056,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 259.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 13,769 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,394,000 after buying an additional 9,937 shares during the period. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar during the third quarter worth about $3,181,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on MORN. StockNews.com raised shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Morningstar presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $360.67.

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.