168,026 Shares in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Acquired by Balyasny Asset Management L.P.

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 168,026 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $56,584,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned 0.39% of Morningstar as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in Morningstar by 178.6% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in Morningstar by 49.5% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth about $71,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 2,495 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.44, for a total transaction of $814,467.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,133,353 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,307,931,753.32. This represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 61,443 shares of company stock worth $19,164,301. 36.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

Morningstar Price Performance

NASDAQ:MORN traded up $7.23 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $305.16. 194,574 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 138,522. 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 firm's 50-day moving average is $286.24 and its 200-day moving average is $318.70. The stock has a market cap of $13.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.31 and a beta of 0.99. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $250.34 and a 1-year high of $365.00.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $581.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $589.07 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This is an increase from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.45%.

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.