State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Reduces Stock Position in Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its stake in shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,077 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 366 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Morningstar were worth $3,394,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Morningstar by 101.7% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 121 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in Morningstar by 49.5% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 139 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the third quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Morningstar by 93.6% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 182 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. 57.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Morningstar from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Morningstar presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $360.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Joseph D. Mansueto sold 1,280 shares of Morningstar stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.57, for a total transaction of $410,329.60. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 10,130,378 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,247,495,275.46. The trade was a 0.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Jason Dubinsky sold 3,223 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.88, for a total value of $1,137,332.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,106,235.52. The trade was a 15.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,106 shares of company stock valued at $7,878,540. Insiders own 37.70% of the company’s stock.

Morningstar Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ MORN opened at $328.45 on Thursday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 1 year low of $269.51 and a 1 year high of $365.00. The firm has a market cap of $14.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 43.39 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $331.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $329.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14.

Morningstar Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Friday, October 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.455 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 3rd. This is an increase from Morningstar’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Morningstar’s dividend payout ratio is 24.04%.

Morningstar Profile

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.