Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Stake in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 65.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,572 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $1,595,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Morningstar by 60.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,007,748 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $236,055,000 after buying an additional 380,391 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in Morningstar during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $81,798,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Morningstar by 43.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 389,627 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $91,266,000 after buying an additional 117,514 shares in the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY grew its holdings in Morningstar by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,326,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $310,745,000 after buying an additional 98,191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Morningstar by 76.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 206,133 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,284,000 after buying an additional 89,099 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of Morningstar stock opened at $286.29 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $12.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.84 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $301.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $280.57. Morningstar, Inc. has a one year low of $163.28 and a one year high of $316.05.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter. Morningstar had a return on equity of 21.79% and a net margin of 10.13%. The firm had revenue of $542.80 million during the quarter.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 4th. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. TheStreet upgraded Morningstar from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,470 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.23, for a total transaction of $2,070,908.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,927,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,029,334,071.73. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Morningstar news, Director Steven N. Kaplan sold 1,250 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 44,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,630,647.87. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 7,470 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.23, for a total value of $2,070,908.10. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 10,927,151 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,029,334,071.73. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 95,544 shares of company stock valued at $27,733,515. Insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

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.