Algert Global LLC Increases Stake in Morningstar, Inc. $MORN

Algert Global LLC lifted its position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,039 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,896 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC owned about 0.12% of Morningstar worth $11,610,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Morningstar during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in Morningstar during the third quarter worth $38,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Morningstar by 54.2% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 165 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the third quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the third quarter valued at about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,122 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $182.32, for a total transaction of $569,203.04. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 8,138,232 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,483,762,458.24. This represents a 0.04% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Michael Holt bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $186.59 per share, with a total value of $186,590.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,480 shares in the company, valued at $1,768,873.20. This trade represents a 11.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 85,243 shares of company stock worth $14,219,154 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 36.20% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Morningstar

Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst bullish thesis — Seeking Alpha publishes a buy/valuation piece arguing Morningstar is attractively priced versus its recurring-revenue, high-ROE business, supporting a long-term buy case. Morningstar: Wonderful Price And At Least A Fair Business
• Positive Sentiment: Another bullish analysis — a second Seeking Alpha article frames MORN as a “gold star opportunity,” reiterating confidence in durable margins and recurring revenue that could support multiple expansion. Morningstar: A Gold Star Opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: PitchBook integration with Perplexity — PitchBook (a Morningstar business) announced a new integration that surfaces PitchBook firmographic data inside Perplexity’s AI interface, potentially increasing enterprise distribution and stickiness for PitchBook data products. This advances AI-driven monetization opportunities. PitchBook Announces New Essential MCP Integration with Perplexity
• Positive Sentiment: New Credit Analytics product — Morningstar Credit Analytics launched credit models and a “Bring Your Own Loan” analysis service, expanding its product set for lenders and risk teams; this can drive incremental enterprise revenue and deepen client relationships. Morningstar Credit Analytics Launches Credit Models and ‘Bring Your Own Loan’ Analysis
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor education/PR coverage — Pieces summarizing Morningstar guidance on private investments and investor education raise visibility but are largely informational rather than revenue-moving in the near term. How to bust myths about private investments, per Morningstar
• Negative Sentiment: Market headwinds — broader consumer/market stories and inflation worries are weighing on sentiment across sectors; macro concern could temper multiple expansion despite company-specific positives. Consumer Stocks Declined as Investors Worry About Inflation — Consumer Roundup

Morningstar Stock Performance

NASDAQ MORN opened at $183.21 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $188.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $211.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56 and a beta of 1.10. Morningstar, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $149.08 and a fifty-two week high of $316.71.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on MORN. UBS Group set a $280.00 price target on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings cut Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Morningstar from $257.00 to $193.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morningstar has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $236.50.

About Morningstar

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.