Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Buys Shares of 2,679 Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH has acquired 2,679 shares of Morningstar, Inc. for approximately $803,000, indicating growing interest from institutional investors, with 57.02% of the stock currently owned by such entities.
• BMO Capital Markets has raised its price target for Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and assigned an "outperform" rating, while Wall Street Zen downgraded its rating from "buy" to "hold."
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.455 per share, reflecting a 0.7% yield, with an annualized dividend payout ratio of 19.38%.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,679 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $803,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in MORN. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter worth $56,584,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Morningstar by 30,785.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 144,237 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $43,252,000 after purchasing an additional 143,770 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Morningstar by 65.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 194,182 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $65,393,000 after acquiring an additional 77,042 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Morningstar by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 561,431 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $189,116,000 after acquiring an additional 64,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at $16,497,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Price Performance

Morningstar stock traded down $2.81 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $259.26. 189,011 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 217,298. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $297.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $300.42. The firm has a market cap of $10.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.59 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.19. Morningstar had a net margin of 17.22% and a return on equity of 23.54%. The company had revenue of $605.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $605.84 million.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 11th were issued a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 11th. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MORN. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 5th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Caroline J. Tsay sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.84, for a total transaction of $61,968.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 4,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,346,254.80. This trade represents a 4.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.86, for a total transaction of $2,246,485.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 9,442,731 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,925,924,627.66. This represents a 0.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 39,069 shares of company stock valued at $12,038,574. Corporate insiders own 36.20% of the company's stock.

Morningstar 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.