Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Holdings Lifted by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 19.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,563 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,751 shares during the period. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $5,286,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Morningstar in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 326.9% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 111 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 101.7% in 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. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its position in Morningstar by 73.8% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ MORN opened at $340.32 on Friday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $269.51 and a 12 month high of $365.00. The company has a market capitalization of $14.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.96 and a beta of 1.19. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $344.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $320.84. 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 (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $569.40 million during the quarter. Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a $0.455 dividend. This is a positive change from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Monday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.45, for a total transaction of $2,985,475.90. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,836,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,570,136,319.20. The trade was a 0.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.48, for a total value of $237,360.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,590 shares in the company, valued at $4,300,963.20. The trade was a 5.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,411 shares of company stock valued at $17,961,104. 39.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on MORN shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $352.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

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.