Joseph Mansueto Sells 7,304 Shares of Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,304 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.63, for a total transaction of $1,173,241.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 8,184,212 shares in the company, valued at $1,314,629,973.56. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $161.85 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $200.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $221.72. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.08 and a 1-year high of $329.16. The firm has a market cap of $6.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17 and a beta of 1.08.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $641.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $634.43 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 27.94% and a net margin of 15.30%.

Morningstar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 2nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is 22.45%.

Key Morningstar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morningstar appointed Scott Brown as President, Direct Platform (effective March 2, 2026) — a senior hire signaling management’s commitment to expand its direct/advisor platform business and accelerate recurring-revenue growth. Morningstar Names Scott Brown as President of Direct Platform Business
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage notes Morningstar tapped an Experian veteran to lead the direct platform push — bringing outside data/tech experience that could speed product integrations and client onboarding. Morningstar taps Experian veteran to lead direct platform push
• Neutral Sentiment: Morningstar’s recent Q1 2026 U.S. Stock Market Outlook flags higher expected market volatility — this could boost demand for research and risk-management tools but timing and revenue impact are uncertain. 7 Most Volatile Stocks Under $5 for Day Trading
• Neutral Sentiment: Research from Morningstar on U.S. life insurers’ move into illiquid assets (and tighter NAIC oversight) highlights demand for data/analytics in insurance — a thematic win for Morningstar’s data products, but with indirect/longer-term revenue implications. Morningstar: US life insurers ramp up illiquid asset bets as NAIC tightens oversight
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold multiple blocks of stock (Feb. 17–18) totaling several thousand shares and roughly $1.0–$1.2M per filing — insider selling can be perceived negatively by the market even though his remaining stake remains large. Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Sells $1,071,789.33 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets cut its price target to $193 (from $257) — a marked reduction that can weigh on sentiment and lower the stock’s near-term upside in investor models. BMO Capital Markets Lowers Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Price Target to $193.00

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new stake in Morningstar in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its position in shares of Morningstar by 120.5% in the 4th quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 172 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on MORN. UBS Group set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Morningstar from $257.00 to $193.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $236.50.

Morningstar Company Profile

Morningstar, Inc is a leading provider of independent investment research, data, and analytics, serving both individual investors and financial professionals. The company offers comprehensive coverage of financial products, including mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), stocks, bonds and market indexes. Morningstar’s proprietary rating systems and research methodologies help clients assess the risk and return profiles of investment opportunities and make informed decisions.

Its core products include Morningstar Direct, an institutional investment analysis platform; Morningstar Office Cloud, a portfolio management solution for advisors; and Morningstar Data, which delivers extensive datasets through APIs and data feeds.