Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP Purchases New Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP bought a new position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,111 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $711,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smith Group Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth $468,000. Oak Thistle LLC raised its position in Morningstar by 194.9% during the 4th quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 4,276 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 2,826 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 29.4% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 1,073 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,563 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $5,286,000 after buying an additional 2,751 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 305,014 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $102,719,000 after buying an additional 13,155 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 8,393 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total value of $2,751,980.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 10,096,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,310,409,573.22. This trade represents a 0.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 79,947 shares of company stock worth $24,690,718. 36.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Morningstar Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $309.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 175,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 141,502. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $288.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $317.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.88 and a beta of 0.99.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.10 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $581.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $589.07 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. This is a positive change from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MORN shares. StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Morningstar from $339.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th.

Morningstar 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.