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

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC decreased its holdings in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm 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 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Morningstar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $111,694,000. Premier Fund Managers Ltd acquired a new position in Morningstar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,694,000. Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new position in Morningstar during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,829,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 339.0% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 117,156 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,453,000 after purchasing an additional 90,466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,803,611 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $944,144,000 after purchasing an additional 51,598 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,635 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.44, for a total transaction of $1,182,974.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 10,142,694 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,300,838,335.36. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 59,544 shares of company stock valued at $18,770,097. Insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Performance

NASDAQ MORN opened at $301.88 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $311.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $327.70. 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. The company has a market capitalization of $12.93 billion, a PE ratio of 39.88 and a beta of 1.23.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released 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 return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%. The firm had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $580.81 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on MORN. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on 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 upgraded 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.