Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto Sells 7,250 Shares

Key Points

• Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) stock for approximately $1.87 million, reducing his ownership stake slightly.
• Morningstar's recent quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $2.40, exceeding analysts’ estimates, despite revenue falling short of expectations.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.455 per share, resulting in a yield of 0.7% and a low dividend payout ratio of 19.38%.

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $258.08, for a total transaction of $1,871,080.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 9,347,481 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,412,397,896.48. The trade was a 0.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Morningstar Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN traded up $5.8750 on Friday, hitting $264.5450. 118,532 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 224,002. The firm's 50-day moving average is $286.06 and its 200 day moving average is $294.83. The company has a market capitalization of $11.16 billion, a PE ratio of 28.19 and a beta of 0.96. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $250.34 and a 1-year high of $365.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

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

Morningstar Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 11th were given a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 11th. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.38%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MORN. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $93,224,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Morningstar by 691.0% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 293,969 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $92,286,000 after buying an additional 256,806 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Morningstar by 88.0% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 540,795 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $162,168,000 after buying an additional 253,137 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Morningstar by 266.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 280,923 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $88,190,000 after buying an additional 204,277 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Morningstar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $56,584,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MORN. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen cut Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morningstar currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $361.67.

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.