Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday.

Separately, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Morningstar from $387.00 to $370.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

Morningstar Stock Up 0.2 %

Morningstar stock opened at $291.71 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.50 billion, a PE ratio of 38.54 and a beta of 1.23. Morningstar has a twelve month low of $278.64 and a twelve month high of $365.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average of $317.13 and a 200-day moving average of $328.55.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $591.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $580.81 million. Morningstar had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 23.28%.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.57, for a total value of $410,329.60. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 10,130,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,247,495,275.46. The trade was a 0.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 59,544 shares of company stock valued at $18,770,097 over the last 90 days. 39.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Morningstar

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Morningstar by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,803,611 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $944,144,000 after acquiring an additional 51,598 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in Morningstar by 9.3% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,201,708 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $383,489,000 after acquiring an additional 102,206 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Morningstar by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,080,599 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $363,903,000 after acquiring an additional 130,087 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Morningstar by 3.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 804,293 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $256,666,000 after acquiring an additional 28,698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wasatch Advisors LP raised its position in Morningstar by 13.9% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 696,023 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $222,115,000 after acquiring an additional 85,098 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.