Rhumbline Advisers Sells 965 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Rhumbline Advisers cut its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,177 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 965 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.18% of Morningstar worth $22,843,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of 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 acquired a new stake in Morningstar in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in Morningstar by 49.5% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Morningstar in the fourth quarter worth $71,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. grew its holdings in Morningstar by 64.2% in 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 period. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morningstar Stock Up 1.9%

NASDAQ:MORN traded up $5.73 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $312.39. The company had a trading volume of 222,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 144,993. The firm has a market cap of $13.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.27 and a beta of 1.02. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $291.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $314.05. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $250.34 and a twelve month high of $365.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. This is a boost from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.45%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Caroline J. Tsay sold 200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.84, for a total transaction of $61,968.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,345 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,346,254.80. This trade represents 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 firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.15, for a total transaction of $2,139,837.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,506,166 shares in the company, valued at $2,805,744,894.90. The trade was a 0.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 62,633 shares of company stock worth $18,891,798 over the last three months. 36.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Morningstar Company 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.