Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $336.58 and last traded at $336.58, with a volume of 27759 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $335.28.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MORN shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $352.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Morningstar has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $360.67.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.6 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $313.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $304.12. The company has a market capitalization of $14.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.52 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $571.90 million during the quarter. Morningstar had a return on equity of 22.34% and a net margin of 11.34%.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. Morningstar’s payout ratio is currently 32.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CRO Daniel Joseph Dunn sold 1,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.89, for a total value of $513,424.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive now directly owns 12,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,160,980.63. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Morningstar news, CRO Daniel Joseph Dunn sold 1,600 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.89, for a total value of $513,424.00. Following the sale, the executive now owns 12,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,160,980.63. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $316.48, for a total transaction of $237,360.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 13,590 shares in the company, valued at $4,300,963.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 59,541 shares of company stock worth $18,399,192 over the last 90 days. 39.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Morningstar by 154.0% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 320,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $94,727,000 after purchasing an additional 194,122 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc acquired a new stake in Morningstar in the first quarter valued at $52,293,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 45.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 509,486 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $145,835,000 after buying an additional 160,281 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 3,164.9% in the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 129,257 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,860,000 after buying an additional 125,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Morningstar in the 1st quarter valued at about $20,986,000. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.