Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Shares Sold by CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lowered its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 5,819 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 66 shares during the quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,876,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MORN. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Morningstar by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 497,411 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $158,772,000 after purchasing an additional 10,437 shares during the last quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter valued at about $468,000. Oak Thistle LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 194.9% in the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 4,276 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,440,000 after buying an additional 2,826 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in Morningstar by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 1,073 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Morningstar by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,563 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,286,000 after acquiring an additional 2,751 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Performance

Morningstar stock opened at $301.88 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $311.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $327.70. The stock has a market cap of $12.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.88 and a beta of 1.23. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $278.64 and a 1-year high of $365.00.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%. The company had revenue of $591.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $580.81 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.25, for a total value of $2,557,749.50. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,038,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,833,301,707.50. This represents a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 59,544 shares of company stock valued at $18,770,097 over the last 90 days. 39.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on MORN. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday.

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.