Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Shares Acquired by Barlow Wealth Partners Inc.

Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,962 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,818 shares during the quarter. Barlow Wealth Partners Inc. owned about 0.08% of Morningstar worth $11,762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MORN. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Morningstar during the third quarter worth $30,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 101.7% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $58,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Morningstar by 93.6% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 182 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 125.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 250 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.88, for a total transaction of $248,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,261,339.20. This represents a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total value of $1,137,332.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,304 shares in the company, valued at $6,106,235.52. This represents a 15.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 51,661 shares of company stock worth $17,723,744 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 37.70% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of MORN stock opened at $330.91 on Wednesday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $269.51 and a 1 year high of $365.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.19 billion, a PE ratio of 43.71 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $341.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $326.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $569.40 million during the quarter. 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 issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MORN. Redburn Atlantic cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Morningstar currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $360.67.

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.