GAMMA Investing LLC Boosts Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 49.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 467 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MORN. Millennium Management LLC increased 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 purchasing an additional 194,122 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 9.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,201,708 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $383,489,000 after buying an additional 102,206 shares during the period. Wasatch Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Morningstar by 13.9% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $222,115,000 after buying an additional 85,098 shares in the last quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter valued at about $19,666,000. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in Morningstar by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 400,520 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $127,814,000 after acquiring an additional 39,263 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on MORN shares. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $390.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com cut Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Redburn Atlantic lowered Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $340.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $360.67.

Morningstar Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ:MORN opened at $322.36 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $13.82 billion, a PE ratio of 42.58 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s 50 day moving average is $343.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $325.19. 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 52 week low of $269.51 and a 52 week high of $365.00.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.455 per share. This is an increase 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 dividend yield of 0.56%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is 24.04%.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other news, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total transaction of $1,137,332.24. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,106,235.52. This trade represents a 15.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.88, for a total transaction of $248,910.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,261,339.20. The trade was a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 51,661 shares of company stock worth $17,723,744. Insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

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.