MetLife Investment Management LLC Purchases 1,242 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 8.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,401 shares of the business services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in Morningstar were worth $5,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 178.6% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 78 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Bradley & Co. Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. increased its stake in Morningstar by 64.2% during the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 271 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of MORN traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $280.63. 123,009 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 133,784. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $250.34 and a 12 month 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 has a market cap of $12.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.07 and a beta of 1.16. The stock's 50-day moving average is $291.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $321.51.

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 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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This is an increase from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's payout ratio is currently 21.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MORN. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th.

Insider Activity at Morningstar

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,635 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.44, for a total transaction of $1,182,974.40. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 10,142,694 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,300,838,335.36. This trade represents a 0.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097. Company insiders own 36.20% of the company's stock.

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.