Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Position Increased by Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 30.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,258 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 531 shares during the quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $720,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Morningstar by 154.0% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 320,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $94,727,000 after acquiring an additional 194,122 shares in the last quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 3rd quarter valued at $19,666,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in Morningstar in the second quarter worth $9,366,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Morningstar during the first quarter worth $9,070,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Morningstar by 217.3% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 42,189 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $12,632,000 after buying an additional 28,894 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.90, for a total value of $1,212,424.20. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 10,581,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,342,578,967. The trade was a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $311.60, for a total transaction of $233,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,468,344. The trade was a 4.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 71,195 shares of company stock worth $23,252,260 over the last three months. Company insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $352.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $360.67.

Morningstar Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of MORN stock opened at $337.57 on Friday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $264.79 and a 12 month high of $352.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market cap of $14.48 billion, a PE ratio of 44.59 and a beta of 1.18. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $328.76 and a 200-day moving average of $310.94.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $569.40 million for the quarter. Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.40%.

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.