United Capital Financial Advisors LLC Buys New Holdings in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 12,919 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,351,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Morningstar by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,626 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,895,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased 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 worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd grew its stake in shares of Morningstar by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 416 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $140,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.

Morningstar Trading Up 1.7 %

NASDAQ MORN traded up $4.57 on Tuesday, reaching $270.48. The company had a trading volume of 33,974 shares, compared to its average volume of 132,596. The firm has a market cap of $11.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.73 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $250.34 and a fifty-two week high of $365.00. The business has a 50 day moving average of $295.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $322.89.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.15. The company 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.67%. This is a boost from Morningstar's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Morningstar's dividend payout ratio is 21.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,635 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $325.44, for a total transaction of $1,182,974.40. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 10,142,694 shares in the company, valued at $3,300,838,335.36. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 59,544 shares of company stock worth $18,770,097. Company insiders own 36.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MORN shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com cut Morningstar from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 11th.

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.