Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Price Target Raised to $355.00

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) had its target price upped by BMO Capital Markets from $339.00 to $355.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.3%

MORN stock opened at $306.41 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $286.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $317.60. The company has a market cap of $12.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.48 and a beta of 0.99. Morningstar has a twelve month low of $250.34 and a twelve month high of $365.00.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The business services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $581.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $589.07 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were given a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.59%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.45%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $326.86, for a total transaction of $2,962,005.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,109,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,304,429,412.62. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 63,223 shares of company stock valued at $19,542,793 over the last three months. Insiders own 36.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Morningstar

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jump Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 646.7% during the 1st quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 17,070 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,119,000 after purchasing an additional 14,784 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 565.0% during the 1st quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 6,510 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,952,000 after purchasing an additional 5,531 shares during the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 777 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. CW Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 32.5% during the 1st quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 13,260 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $3,977,000 after purchasing an additional 3,250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tribune Investment Group LP lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 125.0% during the 1st quarter. Tribune Investment Group LP now owns 36,000 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,795,000 after purchasing an additional 20,000 shares during the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.