Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Sells $396,316.80 in Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,296 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.80, for a total value of $396,316.80. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,429,082 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,883,413,275.60. The trade was a 0.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN traded down $2.63 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $306.30. The company had a trading volume of 170,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 143,406. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $250.34 and a twelve month high of $365.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock has a market cap of $12.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.46 and a beta of 0.99. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $290.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $314.87.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were given a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. This is a positive change from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.45%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the first quarter worth $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Morningstar by 178.6% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 5,066.7% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 155 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.