Raymond James & Associates Has $782,000 Holdings in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) by 18.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,313 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 817 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Middleby were worth $782,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Trust Walden Corp raised its holdings in Middleby by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 149,279 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $19,108,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC lifted its holdings in Middleby by 6.9% in the third quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 2,038 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in Middleby during the third quarter valued at $389,000. Simon Quick Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Middleby by 44.0% during the 3rd quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 2,353 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $301,000 after acquiring an additional 719 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio grew its holdings in Middleby by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 12,068 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,544,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037 shares during the period. 98.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Middleby

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MIDD shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Middleby from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. TheStreet raised shares of Middleby from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of Middleby from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.38.

Middleby Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Middleby stock opened at $145.36 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a current ratio of 2.31. The Middleby Co. has a 52 week low of $109.59 and a 52 week high of $161.01. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $151.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $139.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.79 billion, a PE ratio of 19.62 and a beta of 1.56.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.21. Middleby had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 16.99%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.57 EPS. Middleby’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 10.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middleby 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.