Insider Selling: Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Sells $2,927,297.86 in Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $323.03, for a total transaction of $2,927,297.86. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,085,626 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,257,959,766.78. This trade represents a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Morningstar Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of MORN traded down $3.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $319.96. The company had a trading volume of 163,147 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,585. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $281.37 and a 1 year high of $365.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.27 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $329.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $330.18.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last issued 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 net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. This is an increase from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar’s payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 17th.

Institutional Trading of Morningstar

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 497,411 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $158,772,000 after acquiring an additional 10,437 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Morningstar by 2.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 191,765 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $61,196,000 after purchasing an additional 5,045 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Morningstar by 12.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,843 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,056,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its holdings in Morningstar by 259.3% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 13,769 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,394,000 after purchasing an additional 9,937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,181,000. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.