Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 7,812 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Key Points

• Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its Morningstar stake by 77% in the second quarter, selling 7,812 shares and retaining 2,337 shares valued at approximately $364,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 57.02% of the company.
• Morningstar reported quarterly EPS of $3.10, exceeding the $2.83 analyst consensus, while revenue of $663.2 million also surpassed expectations. Shares recently opened at $201.73, with a market capitalization of about $7.57 billion.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, giving Morningstar an average “Moderate Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $227.33. However, Chairman Joseph Mansueto and other insiders have sold shares totaling $17.8 million over the past 90 days.

Hsbc Holdings PLC cut its stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 77.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,337 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 7,812 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC's holdings in Morningstar were worth $364,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MORN. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Morningstar by 151.7% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 219 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Morningstar during the second quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. bought a new position in Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at about $98,000. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morningstar Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN opened at $201.73 on Wednesday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $195.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $181.84. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $141.49 and a fifty-two week high of $252.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $3.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.27. Morningstar had a return on equity of 38.57% and a net margin of 16.43%.The company had revenue of $663.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $649.72 million.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,906 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.26, for a total transaction of $1,662,315.56. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 7,960,570 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,673,789,448.20. This represents a 0.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 86,500 shares of company stock worth $17,824,451. Company insiders own 38.80% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Company Profile

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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