Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) Sets New 1-Year High at $158.20

The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $158.20 and last traded at $157.82, with a volume of 27795 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $155.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MIDD. TheStreet upgraded shares of Middleby from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Middleby from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on shares of Middleby from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $159.38.

Middleby Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $8.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.70 and a beta of 1.56. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $149.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $136.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.21.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.44 by $0.21. Middleby had a return on equity of 16.99% and a net margin of 9.93%. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.57 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Middleby Co. will post 10.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.12, for a total transaction of $153,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,971 shares in the company, valued at $1,220,519.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Middleby news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.47, for a total transaction of $53,014.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,306 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $955,169.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.12, for a total value of $153,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,220,519.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Middleby

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MIDD. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Middleby by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,097,488 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $750,197,000 after purchasing an additional 22,978 shares during the last quarter. American Trust acquired a new position in Middleby during the fourth quarter worth approximately $206,000. Aurora Investment Counsel raised its stake in Middleby by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 10,451 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,426,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Middleby in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,347,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its stake in shares of Middleby by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 22,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,278,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. 98.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Middleby Company Profile

The Middleby Corporation designs, markets, manufactures, distributes, and services foodservice, food processing, and residential kitchen equipment worldwide. Its Commercial Foodservice Equipment Group segment offers conveyor, combi, convection, baking, proofing, deck, speed cooking, and hydrovection ovens; ranges, fryers, and rethermalizers; steam cooking, food warming, catering, induction cooking, and countertop cooking equipment; heated cabinets, charbroilers, ventless cooking systems, kitchen ventilation, toasters, griddles, charcoal grills, professional mixers, stainless steel fabrication, custom millwork, professional refrigerators, blast chillers, cold rooms, ice machines, and freezers; soft serve ice cream, coffee and beverage dispensing, home and professional craft brewing equipment; and fry dispensers, bottle filling and canning equipment, IoT solutions, and controls development and manufacturing.