Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $160.00 target price (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Middleby from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Middleby from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.86.

Middleby Stock Performance

Shares of MIDD opened at $157.13 on Tuesday. Middleby has a 52 week low of $118.41 and a 52 week high of $182.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $8.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.67 and a beta of 1.72. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $161.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.78.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.38. Middleby had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.14%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $996.69 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Middleby will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $81,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,209.61. This trade represents a 7.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 0.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 344,391 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,915,000 after buying an additional 2,676 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in Middleby by 30.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 13,625 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,896,000 after acquiring an additional 3,143 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in Middleby in the 3rd quarter worth $1,145,000. Millrace Asset Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Middleby during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,368,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Middleby in the third quarter worth about $130,000. 98.55% of the stock is currently 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.