Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph Mansueto Sells 7,250 Shares of Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.06, for a total value of $1,457,685.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 8,016,442 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,611,785,828.52. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Morningstar Stock Performance

NASDAQ MORN opened at $199.33 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $141.49 and a 1-year high of $266.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.88 and a beta of 0.99. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $176.68.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The business services provider reported $3.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.83 by $0.27. Morningstar had a net margin of 16.43% and a return on equity of 38.57%. The firm had revenue of $663.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $649.72 million.

Key Headlines Impacting Morningstar

Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings remain supportive. Morningstar’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with revenue of $663.2 million versus the $649.7 million consensus estimate and EPS of $3.10 versus $2.83 expected. The earnings beat and continued profitability provide a favorable fundamental backdrop for MORN. Morningstar stock and earnings information
• Neutral Sentiment: Morningstar continues expanding its wealth-advice business through technology. A recent report highlighted technology as central to Morningstar Wealth’s plans to grow its presence in the advice market. This could support longer-term growth, but no new financial guidance or specific revenue impact was provided. Tech key to Morningstar Wealth’s plans
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto reported two stock sales. Mansueto sold 7,250 shares on August 3 for approximately $1.44 million and another 7,250 shares on August 5 for approximately $1.46 million. The combined sales reduced his ownership by only about 0.18%; he still directly owns more than 8.0 million shares. Because both transactions were conducted under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan, they are a relatively weak bearish signal. Mansueto SEC Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: Another director also sold shares. Director William Lyons sold 1,000 shares for about $199,000, reducing his direct position by 7.19%. The transaction adds a minor insider-selling overhang, but its small dollar value relative to Morningstar’s market capitalization limits its significance. William Lyons insider sale

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Morningstar in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the second quarter worth about $25,000. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $212.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Friday, June 26th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Morningstar from $280.00 to $260.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $210.00 price objective on Morningstar in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $227.33.

About Morningstar

Morningstar, Inc is a leading provider of independent investment research, data, and analytics, serving both individual investors and financial professionals. The company offers comprehensive coverage of financial products, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stocks, bonds and market indexes. Morningstar’s proprietary rating systems and research methodologies help clients assess the risk and return profiles of investment opportunities and make informed decisions.

Its core products include Morningstar Direct, an institutional investment analysis platform; Morningstar Office Cloud, a portfolio management solution for advisors; and Morningstar Data, which delivers extensive datasets through APIs and data feeds.