Xponance Inc. Has $1.62 Million Stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Xponance Inc. reduced its holdings in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,658 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,620,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 19.6% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 232 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 896 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,292 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,645,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in Morningstar by 42.7% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 284 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Morningstar by 1.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,269 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,703,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Morningstar Stock Performance

MORN stock opened at $300.41 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $300.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $279.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.84 billion, a PE ratio of 91.59 and a beta of 1.15. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $163.28 and a fifty-two week high of $316.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $538.70 million during the quarter. Morningstar had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 18.54%.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is 49.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. TheStreet raised Morningstar from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other news, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.81, for a total value of $383,512.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 44,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Morningstar news, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.81, for a total value of $383,512.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 44,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,297 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $307.69, for a total transaction of $399,073.93. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,775,526 shares in the company, valued at $3,315,521,594.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 95,544 shares of company stock worth $27,733,515 in the last three months. 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.