Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph Mansueto Sells 7,250 Shares of Stock

Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.21, for a total value of $1,132,522.50. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 8,198,253 shares in the company, valued at $1,280,649,101.13. This trade represents a 0.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Morningstar Stock Up 3.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:MORN opened at $160.03 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $204.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $225.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1-year low of $149.08 and a 1-year high of $330.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.96 and a beta of 1.08.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.37. The business had revenue of $641.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $634.43 million. Morningstar had a net margin of 15.30% and a return on equity of 26.36%.

Morningstar Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 2nd. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.45%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MORN. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in Morningstar in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Morningstar during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Morningstar during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 120.5% in the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 172 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Morningstar News

Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat estimates: Morningstar posted stronger-than-expected EPS and solid revenue with notably strong operating cash flow — a classic fundamental driver for investor buying (press release). Q4 press release
• Positive Sentiment: New index licensing deal: Morningstar partnered to launch Catholic-principles equity indexes with the Vatican Bank — a recurring-revenue product that can expand index/data licensing fees and distribution. Vatican bank teams with Morningstar on Catholic stock indexes
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry commentary: Coverage questioning semiliquid/private-market funds and Morningstar’s related analysis may influence advisor sentiment but is unlikely to move core revenue immediately. Article on semiliquid funds
• Neutral Sentiment: Portfolio rebalancing by Morningstar Investment Management (e.g., shifts in Berkshire, Meta, TSMC) signals client-level activity that informs asset-management revenues but doesn’t change corporate guidance. Portfolio moves
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Chairman Joseph Mansueto has executed several small open‑market sales this week (multiple Form 4 filings). While tiny vs. his stake, visible insider sales can create short‑term caution among investors. SEC filing
• Negative Sentiment: Margin and profit headwinds: operating profit and net income were down year-over-year despite revenue growth — investors should watch margin trends and expense pacing in coming quarters. Earnings rundown

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MORN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group set a $280.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Friday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $265.00.

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.