Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Middleby from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Middleby from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 target price (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.86.

Middleby Price Performance

NASDAQ MIDD traded down $1.89 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $156.65. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 341,375 shares, compared to its average volume of 605,697. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.81. The stock has a market cap of $8.40 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61 and a beta of 1.72. The company’s 50-day moving average is $160.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.62. Middleby has a fifty-two week low of $118.41 and a fifty-two week high of $182.73.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.38. Middleby had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $996.69 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Middleby will post 9.11 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $81,755.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,209.61. The trade was a 7.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Middleby by 41.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 398 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Middleby in the 4th quarter worth approximately $71,000. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in Middleby by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Middleby by 220.6% during the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 27.2% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 622 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $84,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. 98.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.