Northern Trust Corp Buys 36,133 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 18.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 230,149 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 36,133 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.54% of Morningstar worth $77,505,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MORN. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Morningstar by 942.3% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 542 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at $71,000. Boothbay Fund Management LLC increased its holdings in Morningstar by 60.6% in the 4th quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $494,000 after buying an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in Morningstar in the 4th quarter worth about $3,431,000. Finally, Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new position in Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at about $258,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Stock Performance

Shares of MORN stock traded down $1.19 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $303.80. 133,539 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 138,503. The company has a market cap of $13.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.13 and a beta of 0.99. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $250.34 and a 12-month high of $365.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $286.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $318.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%. The business had revenue of $581.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $589.07 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were issued a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. This is an increase from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's payout ratio is 20.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $282.25, for a total transaction of $2,557,749.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,038,270 shares in the company, valued at $2,833,301,707.50. This trade represents a 0.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 66,198 shares of company stock worth $20,504,896. 36.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MORN. StockNews.com raised shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd.

About Morningstar

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.