Graham Capital Management L.P. Increases Stock Position in Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Key Points

• Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in Morningstar, Inc. by 250.8% in Q1, owning 6,223 shares valued at approximately $1.87 million.
• The company reported $2.40 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.19, albeit with revenue slightly below analyst expectations at $605.10 million.
• Recent analyst ratings show a moderate outlook for Morningstar, with BMO Capital Markets raising the price target to $355.00 while others downgraded the stock from "buy" to "hold".

Graham Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 250.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,223 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,449 shares during the quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P.'s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,866,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Morningstar in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. MAI Capital Management grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 37.8% in the first quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 153 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Morningstar by 5,066.7% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 155 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 172.3% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 177 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in Morningstar in the 1st quarter worth about $73,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 6,705 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.65, for a total value of $1,747,658.25. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 9,312,836 shares in the company, valued at $2,427,390,703.40. This trade represents a 0.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 85,500 shares of company stock valued at $22,341,957. 36.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MORN traded down $0.87 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $257.24. 249,059 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 317,060. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $250.34 and a 52 week high of $365.00. The company's 50 day moving average price is $276.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $289.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.85 billion, a PE ratio of 27.40 and a beta of 1.01. 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 (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $605.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $605.84 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.54% and a net margin of 17.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on MORN. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective 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 lowered shares of Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $361.67.

About Morningstar

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.