Natixis Sells 16,000 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Natixis decreased its holdings in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) by 50.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,902 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 16,000 shares during the quarter. Natixis' holdings in Morningstar were worth $5,355,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MORN. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Morningstar by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,626 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,895,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Morningstar by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 285 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in Morningstar by 49.5% in the fourth 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 during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 178.6% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Morningstar by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 416 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $140,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. 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 research note on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ MORN traded up $0.92 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $280.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 123,009 shares, compared to its average volume of 133,693. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $291.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $321.61. The company has a market capitalization of $12.02 billion, a PE ratio of 37.07 and a beta of 1.16. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52 week low of $250.34 and a 52 week high of $365.00.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $591.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. This is a boost from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.24%.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $282.25, for a total transaction of $2,557,749.50. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,038,270 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,833,301,707.50. This represents a 0.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097 in the last 90 days. 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.