Barclays PLC Purchases 2,751 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Barclays PLC boosted its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 19.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,563 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,751 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC's holdings in Morningstar were worth $5,286,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MORN. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 9.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,201,708 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $383,489,000 after purchasing an additional 102,206 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Morningstar by 0.5% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 950,512 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $303,327,000 after buying an additional 5,158 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Morningstar by 3.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 804,293 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $256,666,000 after buying an additional 28,698 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 13.9% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $222,115,000 after buying an additional 85,098 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 10.9% in 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. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MORN has been the topic of several recent research reports. Redburn Atlantic lowered Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Morningstar in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $352.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $360.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.22, for a total transaction of $3,219,003.64. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 10,738,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,814,431,929.28. The trade was a 0.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total transaction of $1,137,332.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,304 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,106,235.52. The trade was a 15.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,411 shares of company stock worth $17,961,104. Company insiders own 39.90% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Morningstar stock traded up $2.38 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $340.32. 351,481 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 133,300. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $344.78 and a 200-day moving average of $320.84. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $269.51 and a 12 month high of $365.00. The company has a market cap of $14.59 billion, a PE ratio of 44.96 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

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

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. This is a boost from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Morningstar's payout ratio is presently 21.40%.

Morningstar Company Profile

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.