Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $352.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morningstar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of Morningstar stock opened at $354.74 on Friday. Morningstar has a 12-month low of $269.51 and a 12-month high of $357.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.86 and a beta of 1.18. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $333.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $313.95.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $569.40 million for the quarter. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is presently 21.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $311.60, for a total value of $233,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,468,344. The trade was a 4.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,825 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $351.05, for a total value of $1,342,766.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,791,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,788,313,949. The trade was a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 55,817 shares of company stock worth $18,453,128 in the last 90 days. 37.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morningstar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Morningstar by 326.9% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 111 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Morningstar by 101.7% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Company 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.