Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Purchases 171 Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 25,261 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 171 shares during the quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $8,507,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MORN. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Morningstar by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 497,411 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $158,772,000 after purchasing an additional 10,437 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Morningstar by 2.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 191,765 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $61,196,000 after buying an additional 5,045 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 12.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,843 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $5,056,000 after buying an additional 1,789 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in Morningstar by 259.3% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 13,769 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $4,394,000 after buying an additional 9,937 shares in the last quarter. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in Morningstar during the 3rd quarter worth $3,181,000. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Morningstar

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 3,635 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $325.44, for a total value of $1,182,974.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,142,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,300,838,335.36. This represents a 0.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total transaction of $1,137,332.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 17,304 shares in the company, valued at $6,106,235.52. This represents a 15.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,524 shares of company stock worth $7,049,393 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 39.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

Morningstar Price Performance

MORN stock opened at $321.53 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $335.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $329.19. The firm has a market cap of $13.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.47 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. Morningstar, Inc. has a 12 month low of $269.51 and a 12 month high of $365.00.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be paid a $0.455 dividend. This represents a $1.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. This is a boost from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.04%.

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.