CHICAGO, March 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Morningstar, Inc.
(Nasdaq: MORN), a leading provider of independent investment research, today
announced Morningstar(R) Site Builder(SM) , a new Web-based platform
consisting of Morningstar's financial advisor tools, content, and reports that
investment firms can seamlessly add to their existing advisor Web sites. Site
Builder includes a broad range of Morningstar investment research, portfolio
analysis tools, and sales and educational materials to augment firms' online
Web properties. Site Builder can be integrated into an existing Web site's
framework to encompass a firm's brand identity, design elements, and style
sheets.
BlackRock recently licensed Morningstar Site Builder for use by financial
advisors as a key component in the launch of its new external Financial
Professional Web site. BlackRock's site has received accolades from industry
sources, including Dalbar's Mutual Fund Web Monitor Q4 - 2007 rankings, and
independent consultant kasina's 2007 Top 10 Web Sites for Financial
Intermediaries.
"Investment companies acknowledge that the Web is playing an increasingly
important role in wholesaling activities and in delivering useful product
information to financial advisors," said Chris Boruff, president of
Morningstar's advisor business. "A strong online presence is an essential part
of a fund company's marketing, education, and service strategy to help
advisors and, in turn, end-investors. With that, it's critical for firms to
differentiate themselves and provide more dynamic content to engage advisors."
"Financial professionals have a great deal of choice in the asset managers
they select on behalf of their clients, which means we need to provide a high
level of service and support," said Scott Finder, managing director,
eBusiness, BlackRock. "Our Web presence is a critical touch point and it needs
to provide a positive experience for financial professionals. High impact
tools and content, organized in an intuitive fashion, ensures that advisors
can get what they need quickly, allowing them to focus the bulk of their time
on client relationships. Trusted investment research and software tool
providers like Morningstar help make our site significantly more valuable."
Firms can select all, or some of the following Morningstar tools and
associated Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA)-reviewed reports
and presentations for their sites: Hypothetical Illustrator, Portfolio
Analysis, Portfolio Comparison, Fund Comparison, Stock Intersection,
Investment Detail Reports, Fund Profile Pages, Fund Cost Comparison, Share
Class Cost Comparison, Fund Screener, Find Similar Funds, Retirement and
College Savings Calculator, Retirement Income Illustrator, and Ibbotson
Presentations and Sales Ideas.
About Morningstar, Inc.
Morningstar, Inc. is a leading provider of independent investment research
in North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. The company offers an extensive
line of Internet, software, and print-based products and services for
individuals, financial advisors, and institutions. Morningstar provides data
on more than 265,000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and
similar vehicles. The company has operations in 18 countries and minority
ownership positions in companies based in three other countries.
(C)2008 Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved.
Contact:
Media: Tory Neff 312-696-6050, tory.neff@morningstar.com