Select Equity Group L.P. Cuts Position in Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Key Points

• Select Equity Group L.P. has decreased its stake in Morningstar, Inc. by 14.7%, now owning approximately 1.5% of the company.
• Morningstar reported a EPS of $2.40 for the quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $2.21, with a revenue of $605.10 million.
• A significant percentage of Morningstar's stock, 57.02%, is owned by hedge funds and institutional investors, indicating strong institutional interest.

Select Equity Group L.P. lessened its holdings in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 14.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,172,567 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 201,868 shares during the quarter. Morningstar accounts for 1.5% of Select Equity Group L.P.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Select Equity Group L.P. owned approximately 2.78% of Morningstar worth $351,618,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MORN. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 88.0% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 540,795 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $162,168,000 after purchasing an additional 253,137 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 30,785.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 144,237 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $43,252,000 after acquiring an additional 143,770 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the 1st quarter worth $38,269,000. Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Morningstar by 4,970.8% during the first quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 56,692 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $17,000,000 after purchasing an additional 55,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Morningstar by 688.9% during the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 45,055 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $13,511,000 after purchasing an additional 39,344 shares during the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $361.67.

Morningstar Stock Performance

NASDAQ:MORN traded up $3.78 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $260.75. The stock had a trading volume of 317,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 233,296. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $271.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $288.00. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $249.56 and a 12-month high of $365.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.74 and a beta of 1.01.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The business services provider reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $605.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $605.84 million. Morningstar had a net margin of 17.22% and a return on equity of 23.54%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 6,705 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $260.65, for a total value of $1,747,658.25. Following the sale, the chairman owned 9,312,836 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,427,390,703.40. The trade was a 0.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 85,500 shares of company stock valued at $22,341,957 over the last quarter. 36.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Morningstar

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.