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

Key Points

• Joseph Mansueto, Morningstar chairman, sold 7,250 shares on May 4 at an average price of $169.97 for about $1.23M under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, leaving him with 8,128,992 shares (a 0.09% ownership decline, valued at roughly $1.38B).
• Morningstar posted a strong quarterly beat on April 29 with EPS of $3.18 versus $2.41 expected and revenue of $644.8M versus $626.9M, alongside a 16.06% net margin and 33.14% return on equity.
• The stock traded down to $167.67 (market cap ~$6.38B) with institutional ownership around 57%, while analysts remain mixed (consensus "Hold" and a $236.50 average price target amid divergent firm views).

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $169.97, for a total value of $1,232,282.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 8,128,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,381,684,770.24. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Morningstar Stock Performance

MORN traded down $1.36 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $167.67. 489,829 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 558,778. The stock has a market cap of $6.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.07 and a beta of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $176.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $196.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $149.08 and a 12 month high of $316.71.

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

Institutional Trading of Morningstar

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Morningstar by 85.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,136,213 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $246,910,000 after purchasing an additional 523,387 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 106.9% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 608,244 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $141,119,000 after buying an additional 314,275 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Morningstar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $62,367,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Morningstar by 1,196.5% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 260,978 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $56,713,000 after buying an additional 240,848 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 362.8% in the 3rd quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 187,128 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $43,416,000 after acquiring an additional 146,693 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Morningstar from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target 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, UBS Group set a $280.00 price target on Morningstar in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Morningstar has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $236.50.

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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