Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Takes Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,483 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $836,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 178.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Morningstar during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in Morningstar by 49.5% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 3rd quarter worth $58,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,716 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $327.89, for a total value of $562,659.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 10,151,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,328,450,736.80. This represents a 0.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097 over the last three months. Insiders own 39.90% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Morningstar Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MORN traded down $9.40 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $292.48. 22,103 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 160,500. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $311.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $327.70. The firm has a market cap of $12.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.64 and a beta of 1.23. Morningstar, Inc. has a twelve month low of $278.64 and a twelve month 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.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $591.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $580.81 million. 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 Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. This is a boost from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. Morningstar's payout ratio is presently 21.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on MORN. StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note 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.