Park Avenue Securities LLC Reduces Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Park Avenue Securities LLC reduced its stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,035 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 105 shares during the quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $330,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in MORN. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 2,034 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $649,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the second quarter valued at approximately $530,000. Creative Planning boosted its position in Morningstar by 3.6% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 2,934 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $868,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC grew its stake in Morningstar by 16.7% in the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 20,289 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $6,003,000 after acquiring an additional 2,898 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Morningstar by 154.0% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 320,186 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $94,727,000 after acquiring an additional 194,122 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 target price for the company. Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $352.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morningstar currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $360.67.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In related news, CRO Daniel Joseph Dunn sold 1,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.89, for a total transaction of $513,424.00. Following the sale, the executive now directly owns 12,967 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,160,980.63. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Morningstar news, CRO Daniel Joseph Dunn sold 1,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.89, for a total value of $513,424.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive now owns 12,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,160,980.63. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 721 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $312.94, for a total transaction of $225,629.74. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,532,253 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,295,963,253.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 59,541 shares of company stock valued at $18,399,192 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN opened at $340.08 on Monday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $219.45 and a 1 year high of $340.97. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $314.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $304.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 68.70 and a beta of 1.19.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The business services provider reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Morningstar had a net margin of 11.34% and a return on equity of 22.34%. The company had revenue of $571.90 million during the quarter.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 4th. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.73%.

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.