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

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.43, for a total transaction of $2,221,617.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 9,430,378 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,750,730.54. The trade was a 0.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.9%

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

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $581.90 million for 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is a positive change from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio is presently 20.45%.

Institutional Trading of Morningstar

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake 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 purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MORN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research 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.