New York State Common Retirement Fund Decreases Stock Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

New York State Common Retirement Fund trimmed its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 9.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,975 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,500 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $4,706,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MORN. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Morningstar by 101.7% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Morningstar by 49.5% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 3rd quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 93.6% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 182 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Morningstar Price Performance

MORN opened at $311.16 on Friday. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $328.15 and a 200 day moving average of $329.97. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $281.37 and a 52-week high of $365.00. The stock has a market cap of $13.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 41.10 and a beta of 1.20.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The business services provider reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $591.00 million for 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%.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This is a positive change from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Morningstar’s payout ratio is 24.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,280 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 10,130,378 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,247,495,275.46. This trade represents a 0.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,304 shares in the company, valued at $6,106,235.52. This represents a 15.70 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,561 shares of company stock worth $13,300,821. 39.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.