QRG Capital Management Inc. Acquires 57 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 7.4% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 832 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Scout Investments Inc. boosted its position in Morningstar by 75.8% during the first quarter. Scout Investments Inc. now owns 42,549 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $13,034,000 after purchasing an additional 18,345 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 506.2% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,202 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,071,000 after buying an additional 11,024 shares in the last quarter. M&G Plc lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. M&G Plc now owns 173,105 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $51,239,000 after buying an additional 3,322 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,207,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Morningstar by 104.2% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 6,114 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $1,885,000 after purchasing an additional 3,120 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 5,257 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.37, for a total transaction of $1,631,615.09. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,599,799 shares in the company, valued at $3,289,859,615.63. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,838 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.90, for a total value of $1,212,424.20. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,581,130 shares in the company, valued at $3,342,578,967. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 5,257 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.37, for a total value of $1,631,615.09. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 10,599,799 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,289,859,615.63. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 56,343 shares of company stock valued at $17,858,138 over the last quarter. 39.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MORN shares. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $352.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Redburn Atlantic lowered 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 downgraded shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

Morningstar Price Performance

Morningstar stock opened at $348.57 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $326.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $309.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $263.79 and a 52 week high of $352.00. The stock has a market cap of $14.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.47 and a beta of 1.18.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The business services provider reported $2.00 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.01). Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%. The business had revenue of $569.40 million for the quarter.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.46%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is 21.40%.

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.