Morningstar, Inc. $MORN Shares Sold by Motley Fool Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Motley Fool Asset Management reduced its Morningstar stake by 44.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 8,216 shares and leaving it with 10,339 shares worth about $2.25 million.
• Morningstar reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.18 versus the $2.41 consensus and revenue of $644.8 million, both ahead of analyst expectations.
• Analysts remain generally constructive on the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $236.50, even as some recent insider sales were disclosed.

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC cut its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 44.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,339 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 8,216 shares during the period. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC's holdings in Morningstar were worth $2,247,000 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 company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 23.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 178 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 36.0% in the fourth quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 185 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $309,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 54.2% in the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 4.7% in the third quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,641 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $350,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morningstar Price Performance

NASDAQ:MORN opened at $186.06 on Thursday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $149.08 and a 52 week high of $316.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The company has a market capitalization of $7.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.95 and a beta of 1.00. The stock's fifty day moving average is $177.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $189.23.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MORN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. UBS Group set a $280.00 price objective on Morningstar in a research report on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Morningstar from $257.00 to $193.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Morningstar from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $236.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In related news, Director William M. Lyons sold 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.00, for a total value of $125,300.00. Following the sale, the director owned 13,904 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,488,816. The trade was a 4.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 2,270 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.72, for a total value of $401,154.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 8,043,492 shares in the company, valued at $1,421,445,906.24. This represents a 0.03% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 64,720 shares of company stock worth $11,169,471 over the last quarter. 38.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Morningstar Profile

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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