BMO Capital Markets Cuts Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Price Target to $193.00

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) had its target price decreased by BMO Capital Markets from $257.00 to $193.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

MORN has been the topic of a number of other reports. UBS Group set a $280.00 target price on shares of Morningstar in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $236.50.

Morningstar Price Performance

Shares of MORN stock opened at $161.85 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $200.21 and its 200-day moving average is $221.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of 18.17 and a beta of 1.08. Morningstar has a 52 week low of $149.08 and a 52 week high of $329.16.

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

Morningstar Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Friday, October 2nd will be paid 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 (DPR) is presently 22.45%.

Insider Activity at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 6,737 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.09, for a total value of $1,071,789.33. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 8,184,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,302,107,900.25. This trade represents a 0.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Caroline J. Tsay sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.48, for a total transaction of $131,088.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,745 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $818,207.60. This trade represents a 13.81% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 55,365 shares of company stock valued at $9,304,662 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 36.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Morningstar

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Morgan Stanley grew its position in shares of Morningstar by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,006,325 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $435,995,000 after purchasing an additional 47,360 shares during the period. Bamco Inc. NY lifted its stake in Morningstar by 9.2% in the third quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 1,414,305 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $328,133,000 after buying an additional 118,979 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 85.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,136,213 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $246,910,000 after buying an additional 523,387 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Morningstar by 48.0% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 900,297 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $195,644,000 after acquiring an additional 292,053 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 1.9% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 626,941 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $196,839,000 after acquiring an additional 11,408 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar News Roundup

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

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.