KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Acquires Shares of 5,600 Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 5,600 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,886,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its position in Morningstar by 13.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $222,115,000 after purchasing an additional 85,098 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $16,497,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings 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 worth $127,814,000 after buying an additional 39,263 shares during the last quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. raised 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 buying an additional 33,595 shares during the period. Finally, Nicholas Company Inc. grew its position in Morningstar by 115.2% in the fourth quarter. Nicholas Company Inc. now owns 56,630 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $19,071,000 after acquiring an additional 30,320 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Trading Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ:MORN traded up $1.64 on Tuesday, reaching $301.51. 235,731 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 127,053. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.83 and a beta of 1.23. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $278.64 and a 52-week high of $365.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $312.20 and a 200-day moving average of $327.89.

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Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. Morningstar had a return on equity of 23.28% and a net margin of 14.69%. The firm had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $580.81 million.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This is a boost from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 10,151,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,328,450,736.80. This represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097. Company insiders own 39.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on MORN. StockNews.com downgraded Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on shares of Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

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.