Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Sees Strong Trading Volume - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Morningstar, Inc. experienced a significant increase in trading volume, with 276,416 shares traded, up by 11% from the previous session.
• Wall Street Zen downgraded Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating, although the stock has a consensus target price of $361.67.
• Insiders have recently sold 85,500 shares valued at over $22 million, representing a notable stock transaction by company chairman Joseph D. Mansueto.

Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 276,416 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 11% from the previous session's volume of 248,280 shares.The stock last traded at $234.09 and had previously closed at $235.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Morningstar Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $9.95 billion, a PE ratio of 25.13 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $262.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $284.28.

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

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 6,705 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chairman owned 9,312,836 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,427,390,703.40. This represents a 0.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 85,500 shares of company stock valued at $22,341,957. 36.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MORN. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Morningstar during the second quarter valued at approximately $93,224,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Morningstar by 691.0% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 293,969 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $92,286,000 after acquiring an additional 256,806 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Morningstar by 88.0% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 540,795 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $162,168,000 after acquiring an additional 253,137 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Morningstar by 266.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 280,923 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $88,190,000 after acquiring an additional 204,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Morningstar by 22,716.4% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 162,681 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $50,512,000 after acquiring an additional 161,968 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.

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.

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