Morningstar Acquires Realpoint LLC (MORN)
Mornigstar Inc. (NASDAQ: MORN) has announced its acquisition of credit-rating firm Realpoint LLC. The deal is worth $52 million and will be funded with cash and stock. The deal is likely to help Morningstar Inc. (MORN) in getting a foothold in the corporate credit rating segment.
Joe Mansueto, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Morningstar, said, “Together, we want to restore credibility to the credit-ratings business and be a positive force in rating structured products." Currently, Realpoint rates only commercial mortgage-backed securities. However, it is looking to enter residential and consumer loan-backed securities rating market. Rob Dobilas, Chief Executive Officer and President of Realpoint, said, “We had been looking for a partner to grow in these areas and had talked to a lot of people. Our culture is very similar, we use innovative technologies and we are a natural fit."
