Key Points
- Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 6,608 shares on Feb. 20 at an average price of $161.34 for about $1.07M, trimming his stake by 0.08% while still owning 8,170,354 shares valued at roughly $1.32B.
- Morningstar beat the recent quarter's estimates with EPS of $2.71 (vs. $2.34) and revenue of $641.1M (vs. $634.4M), announced a $0.50 quarterly dividend (1.3% yield), but faces mixed analyst views including BMO cutting its target to $193 and a consensus "Hold" rating (avg. target $236.50).
Morningstar, Inc. (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) Chairman Joseph Mansueto sold 6,608 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.34, for a total transaction of $1,066,134.72. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 8,170,354 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,318,204,914.36. This trade represents a 0.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.
Morningstar Price Performance
NASDAQ:MORN opened at $159.48 on Friday. Morningstar, Inc. has a 52-week low of $149.08 and a 52-week high of $328.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $199.12 and a 200 day moving average of $220.95. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.90 and a beta of 1.08.
Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The business services provider reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.37. The firm had revenue of $641.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $634.43 million. Morningstar had a return on equity of 27.94% and a net margin of 15.30%.
Morningstar Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 2nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Morningstar's payout ratio is presently 22.45%.
Key Stories Impacting Morningstar
Here are the key news stories impacting Morningstar this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Appointment of Scott Brown as President, Direct Platform — a senior hire (effective Mar 2) intended to accelerate Morningstar’s direct/advisor platform growth; this could help expand subscription and platform revenues if execution succeeds. Morningstar Names Scott Brown as President of Direct Platform Business
- Positive Sentiment: Hired an Experian veteran to lead the direct platform push — another leadership move signaling focused investment in direct channels, which could improve client acquisition and margins over time. Morningstar taps Experian veteran to lead direct platform push
- Neutral Sentiment: Research product mention — Morningstar published its Safe Retirement Withdrawal Rate for 2026 at 3.9%, reinforcing its role as a trusted research provider; useful for brand and client engagement but unlikely to move near-term revenue materially. Morningstar Safe Retirement Withdrawal Rate For 2026 Is 3.9%
- Negative Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets cut its price target on MORN to $193 (from $257) — a material downward adjustment that reduces analyst-implied valuation and can trigger short-term selling or limit buying interest. BMO Capital Markets Lowers Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN) Price Target to $193.00
- Negative Sentiment: Repeated insider sales by Chairman Joseph Mansueto (multiple Form 4 filings Feb 17–20 totaling small blocks at ~ $159–$162) — while the sales are tiny relative to his large remaining stake, they add to headline selling and can amplify short‑term downward pressure. SEC Form 4 filing (Mansueto insider sales)
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morningstar in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in Morningstar during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Morningstar in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Morningstar in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in shares of Morningstar by 120.5% during the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 172 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.02% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group set a $280.00 price objective on shares of Morningstar in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings lowered Morningstar from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Morningstar from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Morningstar from $257.00 to $193.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $236.50.
Get Our Latest Report on MORN
About Morningstar
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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