Bank of America Corp DE Invests $30.05 Million in Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Key Points

• Bank of America acquired 192,610 Morningstar shares worth approximately $30.05 million, giving it a 0.51% stake in the company.
• Institutional investors own 57.02% of Morningstar, while insiders own 38.80%; Chairman Joseph Mansueto recently sold 5,659 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and $227.33 price target. Morningstar also exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $3.10 in EPS versus the $2.83 consensus and $663.2 million in revenue.

Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 192,610 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $30,051,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.51% of Morningstar as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 151.7% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 219 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 8.0% during the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in Morningstar by 15.6% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,007 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the period. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Morningstar in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 5,659 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.84, for a total value of $1,238,415.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 7,938,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,737,193,937.28. This represents a 0.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 86,500 shares of company stock valued at $17,824,451 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 38.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Morningstar from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Morningstar from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $210.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $227.33.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of MORN opened at $195.23 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.49 and a 52 week high of $238.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $198.69 and a 200-day moving average of $182.47. The firm has a market cap of $7.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.49 and a beta of 1.00.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $3.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.83 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $663.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $649.72 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 38.57% and a net margin of 16.43%.

About Morningstar

Morningstar, Inc is a global provider of independent investment research, data, and financial information. The company serves individual investors, financial advisors, asset managers, institutions, and retirement plan providers with tools designed to support investment analysis, portfolio construction, and financial decision-making.

Its offerings include investment research and ratings, market and portfolio data, indexes, software platforms, and retirement planning solutions. Key products include Morningstar Direct for institutional research and analysis and Advisor Workstation for financial professionals.

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