Geode Capital Management LLC Raises Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 2.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 497,411 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 10,437 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.16% of Morningstar worth $158,772,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 16,563 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $5,286,000 after buying an additional 2,751 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its stake in Morningstar by 7.0% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 4,280 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its stake in Morningstar by 2.4% in the third quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 10,615 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $3,387,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd grew its holdings in Morningstar by 80.2% during the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 2,299 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $734,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DF Dent & Co. Inc. increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 33,595 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Morningstar Stock Down 1.6 %

Morningstar stock traded down $5.84 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $349.69. The company's stock had a trading volume of 299,422 shares, compared to its average volume of 121,026. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.97 and a beta of 1.19. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $269.51 and a 52-week high of $365.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $344.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $319.81.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This is an increase from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Morningstar's payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Director William M. Lyons sold 750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.88, for a total value of $248,910.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,261,339.20. This represents a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.22, for a total transaction of $2,974,329.64. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,845,718 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,559,781,561.96. This trade represents a 0.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,411 shares of company stock valued at $17,961,104. 39.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $390.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $352.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Redburn Atlantic lowered Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $340.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.