286,994 Shares in Morningstar, Inc. $MORN Acquired by Norges Bank

Key Points

• Norges Bank bought 286,994 shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter, a position valued at about $62.4 million and equal to roughly 0.70% of the company.
• Morningstar reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.18 versus the $2.41 consensus estimate and revenue of $644.8 million, also above expectations.
• Insider selling has been notable, with director William M. Lyons and CFO Michael Holt both selling shares recently; over the last three months, insiders sold 64,720 shares worth about $11.17 million.

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 286,994 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $62,367,000. Norges Bank owned about 0.70% of Morningstar as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in Morningstar by 23.6% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 178 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 36.0% during the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 185 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 54.2% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 4.7% during the third quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Director William M. Lyons sold 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $179.00, for a total value of $125,300.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 13,904 shares in the company, valued at $2,488,816. The trade was a 4.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Michael Holt sold 270 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.05, for a total transaction of $44,833.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 12,326 shares in the company, valued at $2,046,732.30. This represents a 2.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 64,720 shares of company stock valued at $11,169,471. Corporate insiders own 38.80% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Price Performance

Morningstar stock opened at $185.76 on Friday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $149.08 and a 52-week high of $316.71. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $176.04 and a 200-day moving average of $189.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.92 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The business services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.77. Morningstar had a net margin of 16.06% and a return on equity of 33.14%. The company had revenue of $644.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $626.91 million.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MORN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Morningstar from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Morningstar from $257.00 to $193.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. UBS Group set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $236.50.

More Morningstar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morningstar’s high-profile valuation of SpaceX has generated heavy media coverage and may boost visibility for MORN as a credible independent research provider. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Morningstar stock crossed above its 200-day moving average, a technical signal that can attract momentum buyers and suggest improving trend strength. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple articles repeated Morningstar’s view that SpaceX is significantly overvalued, keeping MORN in the news but not directly changing its fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Morningstar also published commentary on broader market topics, including single-stock turbulence and political fraud claims, which appears more informational than stock-moving for MORN. Article Title

Morningstar Company Profile

Morningstar, Inc is a leading provider of independent investment research, data, and analytics, serving both individual investors and financial professionals. The company offers comprehensive coverage of financial products, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stocks, bonds and market indexes. Morningstar's proprietary rating systems and research methodologies help clients assess the risk and return profiles of investment opportunities and make informed decisions.

Its core products include Morningstar Direct, an institutional investment analysis platform; Morningstar Office Cloud, a portfolio management solution for advisors; and Morningstar Data, which delivers extensive datasets through APIs and data feeds.

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