Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Shares Sold by Parnassus Investments LLC

Parnassus Investments LLC lessened its stake in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 70,111 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 923 shares during the quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $23,611,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in Morningstar by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,201,708 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $383,489,000 after acquiring an additional 102,206 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 13.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $222,115,000 after purchasing an additional 85,098 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth $16,497,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 10.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 400,520 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $127,814,000 after purchasing an additional 39,263 shares during the period. Finally, DF Dent & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Morningstar by 61.3% during the 3rd quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 88,378 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $28,203,000 after purchasing an additional 33,595 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Performance

Shares of MORN opened at $282.49 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.10 billion, a PE ratio of 37.32 and a beta of 1.23. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $319.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $328.76. 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 12-month low of $278.64 and a 12-month high of $365.00.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.25, for a total transaction of $2,557,749.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,038,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,833,301,707.50. This represents a 0.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 59,542 shares of company stock valued at $18,769,523 over the last quarter. Insiders own 37.70% of the company’s stock.

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.