Copeland Capital Management LLC Purchases 29,933 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Key Points

• Copeland Capital Management increased its Morningstar stake by 28.4% in the first quarter, buying 29,933 shares and lifting its holdings to 135,215 shares worth about $22.9 million.
• Morningstar’s latest earnings beat expectations, reporting $3.18 EPS versus $2.41 expected and revenue of $644.8 million versus $626.91 million estimated.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the stock, with Morningstar carrying a Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $227.33, while the shares recently traded at $172.48.

Copeland Capital Management LLC raised its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 28.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 135,215 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 29,933 shares during the quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.36% of Morningstar worth $22,858,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the third quarter worth $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 120.5% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 172 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.23, for a total value of $1,205,167.50. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 8,114,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,348,872,005.16. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 64,720 shares of company stock valued at $11,169,471. Company insiders own 38.80% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of MORN opened at $172.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $170.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $179.78. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $141.49 and a fifty-two week high of $292.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.56 billion, a PE ratio of 17.56 and a beta of 1.01.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MORN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $212.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a report on Friday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, June 21st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Morningstar from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Morningstar from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $210.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morningstar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $227.33.

About Morningstar

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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