Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Sells $562,659.24 in Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total value of $562,659.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,151,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,328,450,736.80. The trade was a 0.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $327.07 on Friday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12-month low of $269.51 and a 12-month high of $365.00. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $337.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $328.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.02 billion, a PE ratio of 43.21 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This is an increase from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morningstar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $360.67.

Institutional Trading of Morningstar

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MORN. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $16,497,000. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Morningstar by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 8,070 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,718,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth $5,790,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 9,172 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,088,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 16,626 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,599,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.