Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Makes New $246,000 Investment in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 821 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MORN. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Morningstar by 178.6% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the period. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter worth approximately $71,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. increased its position in Morningstar by 64.2% during the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 271 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MORN shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th.

Insider Activity

In other Morningstar news, Director Caroline J. Tsay sold 200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 now owns 4,345 shares in the company, valued at $1,346,254.80. The trade was a 4.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.15, for a total transaction of $2,139,837.50. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 9,506,166 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,805,744,894.90. This trade represents a 0.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 53,571 shares of company stock worth $16,334,049 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 36.20% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Trading Down 1.3%

MORN stock traded down $3.93 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $303.19. 190,989 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 145,588. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $250.34 and a fifty-two week high of $365.00. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $291.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $313.44. The company has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.05 and a beta of 1.02.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.13. Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%. The business had revenue of $581.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $589.07 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. This is a positive change from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's payout ratio is currently 20.45%.

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.