Insider Selling: Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Sells 7,250 Shares of Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.89, for a total transaction of $1,528,952.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 8,609,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,815,692,673.63. This trade represents a 0.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Morningstar Trading Down 1.2%

NASDAQ:MORN traded down $2.66 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $210.18. 322,769 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 278,791. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $202.89 and a 52 week high of $365.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.91 and a beta of 1.06. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $222.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $264.45.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The business services provider reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $617.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $603.29 million. Morningstar had a net margin of 15.70% and a return on equity of 24.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MORN. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Morningstar in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets set a $250.00 target price on Morningstar in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Morningstar from $350.00 to $320.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $285.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MORN. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Morningstar by 106.9% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 608,244 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $141,119,000 after acquiring an additional 314,275 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 2nd quarter valued at about $93,224,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 88.0% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 540,795 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $162,168,000 after purchasing an additional 253,137 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 204,277 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings 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 buying an additional 161,968 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

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.