Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Sells 2,330 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 9.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,605 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 2,330 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. owned 0.06% of Morningstar worth $6,757,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 19.6% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 232 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 896 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 3,654 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $742,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,292 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,645,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 10,501 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,868,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MORN. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. TheStreet upgraded shares of Morningstar from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.81, for a total transaction of $383,512.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 44,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 6,926 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $279.39, for a total transaction of $1,935,055.14. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 10,934,986 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,055,125,738.54. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.81, for a total transaction of $383,512.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 44,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 95,544 shares of company stock worth $27,733,515. 39.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Morningstar Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of MORN opened at $292.38 on Friday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $163.28 and a 1-year high of $316.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 89.14 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a 50-day moving average of $298.92 and a 200 day moving average of $277.50.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The business services provider reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter. Morningstar had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 18.54%. The business had revenue of $538.70 million during the quarter.

Morningstar Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 5th will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 4th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.39%.

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.