AlphaQuest LLC decreased its stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 92.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 979 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 11,764 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Morningstar were worth $330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 9.3% during 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 purchasing an additional 102,206 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $222,115,000 after acquiring an additional 85,098 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $16,497,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 400,520 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $127,814,000 after acquiring an additional 39,263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DF Dent & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 61.3% during the 3rd quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 88,378 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $28,203,000 after acquiring an additional 33,595 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity
In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total transaction of $562,659.24. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,151,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,328,450,736.80. This trade represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 59,542 shares of company stock worth $18,769,523. Company insiders own 39.90% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th.
Read Our Latest Research Report on Morningstar
Morningstar Trading Up 1.6 %
MORN stock traded up $4.45 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $286.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 170,970 shares, compared to its average volume of 145,532. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $318.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $328.72. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $278.64 and a 1 year high of $365.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.90 and a beta of 1.23.
Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.15. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%. The business had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $580.81 million.
Morningstar Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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