MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Brokerages

Shares of MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $26.25.

MGPI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on MGP Ingredients from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Weiss Ratings cut MGP Ingredients from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Roth Capital cut their price target on shares of MGP Ingredients from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th.

MGP Ingredients Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:MGPI opened at $16.79 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.17. The stock has a market cap of $359.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.44 and a beta of 0.49. MGP Ingredients has a fifty-two week low of $12.42 and a fifty-two week high of $26.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 6.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.07. MGP Ingredients had a positive return on equity of 6.58% and a negative net margin of 51.12%. The firm had revenue of $117.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $119.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.85 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that MGP Ingredients will post 1.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGP Ingredients Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. MGP Ingredients’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -4.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Leslie Lux sold 27,731 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.40, for a total transaction of $399,326.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul Lux sold 33,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.76, for a total transaction of $586,080.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 550,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,776,134.08. This trade represents a 5.66% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 31.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MGP Ingredients

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MGPI. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of MGP Ingredients in the 2nd quarter valued at $22,258,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of MGP Ingredients by 11.6% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 760,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,979,000 after buying an additional 78,849 shares during the period. Tieton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MGP Ingredients during the 2nd quarter valued at $11,252,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MGP Ingredients during the 1st quarter worth $3,064,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of MGP Ingredients during the 1st quarter worth $2,725,000. 77.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About MGP Ingredients

MGP Ingredients, Inc (NASDAQ: MGPI) is a producer and marketer of distilled spirits and specialty food and beverage ingredients. The company operates distilleries and processing facilities that manufacture bourbon, rye whiskey, vodka, gin, tequila and other distilled products, as well as grain-based alcohol and related ingredients.

The company serves customers through both its Distilling Solutions and Branded Spirits businesses. Its branded portfolio includes products such as Ezra Brooks, Yellowstone, Daviess County, El Mayor and Everclear, while its distilling operations supply spirits and alcohol to beverage companies and other commercial customers.