Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning.

Separately, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd.

Morningstar Stock Performance

Shares of Morningstar stock opened at $290.88 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $12.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.43 and a beta of 1.23. 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 has a 1 year low of $278.64 and a 1 year high of $365.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $310.92 and its 200 day moving average is $327.45.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $580.81 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is 21.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total transaction of $562,659.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,151,120 shares in the company, valued at $3,328,450,736.80. The trade was a 0.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097. 39.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Morningstar by 184.6% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 811 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 526 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Morningstar by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,643 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $553,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at $915,000. Forum Financial Management LP bought a new stake in Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at about $223,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 98,337 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $33,116,000 after buying an additional 9,658 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Company Profile

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.