Nicholas Company Inc. Sells 30,260 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Key Points

• Nicholas Company Inc. cut its Morningstar stake by 53.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 30,260 shares and leaving it with 26,315 shares worth about $5.7 million.
• Morningstar reported better-than-expected Q1 results, posting EPS of $3.18 versus analyst expectations of $2.41 and revenue of $644.8 million versus $626.9 million forecast.
• Insider activity was mixed: CFO Michael Holt bought 1,000 shares, while Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares in a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 transaction; analysts currently rate the stock a Hold with a consensus target of $236.50.

Nicholas Company Inc. lowered its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 53.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,315 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 30,260 shares during the quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. owned approximately 0.06% of Morningstar worth $5,719,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC grew its stake in Morningstar by 3.5% in the third quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,932 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $448,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.0%

Morningstar stock opened at $176.69 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.99 and a beta of 0.99. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.08 and a 1-year high of $316.71. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $177.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $195.27.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on MORN. Wall Street Zen raised Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. UBS Group set a $280.00 target price on Morningstar in a research report on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price 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 cut Morningstar from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $236.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morningstar news, CFO Michael Holt acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $186.59 per share, with a total value of $186,590.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,768,873.20. This trade represents a 11.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.23, for a total value of $1,205,167.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 8,114,492 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,348,872,005.16. The trade was a 0.09% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 84,674 shares of company stock valued at $13,907,560 in the last three months. Insiders own 38.80% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Morningstar

Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morningstar’s Q1 earnings beat and revenue outperformance are the clearest catalysts supporting the stock’s recent rise. Why Morningstar (MORN) Is Up 5.5% After Strong Q1 EPS Jump And Visible Insider Activity
• Neutral Sentiment: Morningstar highlighted top ETFs as investors rotate toward defensive strategies, which may support the company’s research and data franchise but is not a direct earnings catalyst. Morningstar highlights top ETFs as investors eye defensive shift
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage of Morningstar’s decision not to hold earnings calls and its CEO’s support for less frequent reporting is more about corporate communication than near-term financial performance. Morningstar doesn't do earnings calls. Here's why its CEO agrees with the SEC's plan to drop quarterly reporting
• Neutral Sentiment: The company was also mentioned in broader market and stock-list articles, but those stories do not appear to materially affect Morningstar’s fundamentals. These 15 stocks trade like the hottest tech names - but they're still under the radar
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,250 shares in a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 transaction. The sale was small relative to his remaining holdings, but insider selling can still be viewed cautiously by some investors. SEC filing for Joseph D. Mansueto sale

Morningstar Company 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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