Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 291,705 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 94% from the previous session's volume of 150,655 shares.The stock last traded at $305.71 and had previously closed at $302.84.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several brokerages have issued reports on MORN. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd.
Get Our Latest Report on Morningstar
Morningstar Stock Performance
The company has a market capitalization of $13.10 billion, a PE ratio of 34.83 and a beta of 1.02. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $299.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $309.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11.
Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.13. Morningstar had a net margin of 16.60% and a return on equity of 23.23%. The company had revenue of $581.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $589.07 million.
Morningstar Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 11th will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 11th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.45%.
Insider Transactions at Morningstar
In other news, Director Caroline J. Tsay sold 200 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.84, for a total value of $61,968.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,345 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,346,254.80. This trade represents a 4.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.15, for a total transaction of $2,139,837.50. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 9,506,166 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,805,744,894.90. The trade was a 0.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 53,569 shares of company stock valued at $16,333,474 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 36.20% of the company's stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar
A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MORN. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Morningstar in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Morningstar in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MAI Capital Management increased its position in Morningstar by 37.8% in the 1st quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 153 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Morningstar by 5,066.7% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 155 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Morningstar
(
Get Free Report)
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.
Recommended Stories
Before you consider Morningstar, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Morningstar wasn't on the list.
While Morningstar currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Today, we are inviting you to take a free peek at our proprietary, exclusive, and up-to-the-minute list of 20 stocks that Wall Street's top analysts hate.
Many of these appear to have good fundamentals and might seem like okay investments, but something is wrong. Analysts smell something seriously rotten about these companies. These are true "Strong Sell" stocks.
Get This Free Report
Like this article? Share it with a colleague.
Link copied to clipboard.
