Smith Group Asset Management LLC Purchases Shares of 1,390 Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Smith Group Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,390 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $468,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MORN. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Morningstar in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 101.7% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 93.6% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 182 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the third quarter worth approximately $58,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MORN has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Morningstar in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a "buy" rating and a $390.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $340.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $360.67.

Morningstar Price Performance

Morningstar stock traded up $4.73 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $331.21. The company had a trading volume of 22,175 shares, compared to its average volume of 112,637. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $269.51 and a fifty-two week high of $365.00. 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 has a market cap of $14.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.83 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $339.93 and a 200 day simple moving average of $328.13.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a $0.455 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 3rd. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. This is a positive change from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.04%.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 9,062 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $328.22, for a total transaction of $2,974,329.64. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,845,718 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,559,781,561.96. The trade was a 0.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,106,235.52. This trade represents a 15.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 50,911 shares of company stock worth $17,474,834. Company insiders own 39.90% of the company's stock.

Morningstar 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.