Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $251.04 and last traded at $246.6960, with a volume of 5,397 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $248.65.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Morningstar from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Morningstar from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Morningstar from $230.00 to $237.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $235.67.

Morningstar Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $210.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $187.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The business services provider reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.44. Morningstar had a return on equity of 45.17% and a net margin of 17.00%. The company had revenue of $672.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $664.75 million.

Insider Transactions at Morningstar

In other Morningstar news, Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 7,906 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.26, for a total transaction of $1,662,315.56. Following the sale, the chairman owned 7,960,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,673,789,448.20. This represents a 0.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 67,408 shares of company stock worth $14,847,568. 38.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Morningstar

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MORN. Grove Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Morningstar in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 80.0% in the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 135 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 41.7% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 221 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Morningstar by 260.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 234 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. 57.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Morningstar Company Profile

Morningstar, Inc. is a global provider of independent investment research, data, ratings and investment-management tools. The company serves individual investors, financial advisers, asset managers, retirement plan providers and institutions. Its offerings include investment and portfolio data, mutual fund and exchange-traded fund research, software for financial professionals, and wealth-management services. Morningstar also provides credit ratings through DBRS Morningstar and sustainability research through Sustainalytics.