Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $27.08 Million Stock Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 22.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,845 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 25,095 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.20% of Morningstar worth $27,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,259 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 1.6% during the second quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 3,025 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $895,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV grew its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 2.2% during the third quarter. Planning Alternatives Ltd. ADV now owns 2,254 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. George Kaiser Family Foundation increased its stake in shares of Morningstar by 0.7% in the second quarter. George Kaiser Family Foundation now owns 7,693 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Morningstar by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 413 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $132,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $340.77 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $14.61 billion, a PE ratio of 45.02 and a beta of 1.19. 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 twelve month low of $269.51 and a twelve month high of $365.00. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $344.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $321.54.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other news, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.48, for a total transaction of $237,360.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,300,963.20. This represents a 5.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 118 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $342.13, for a total value of $40,371.34. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,788,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,691,027,765.14. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,411 shares of company stock valued at $17,961,104 in the last quarter. 39.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Morningstar in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic downgraded Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $352.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.