Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Thursday.

MIDD has been the topic of a number of other reports. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Middleby from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Middleby from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Middleby from $185.00 to $175.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $179.43.

Middleby Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:MIDD opened at $143.55 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market cap of $7.70 billion, a PE ratio of 19.80 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $157.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $146.21. Middleby has a one year low of $118.41 and a one year high of $182.73.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $996.69 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Middleby will post 9.11 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of the business’s 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middleby

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MIDD. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Middleby by 4,494.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,266,327 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $171,524,000 after acquiring an additional 1,238,767 shares during the period. Garden Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Middleby in the fourth quarter valued at $101,958,000. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Middleby during the fourth quarter worth about $91,869,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Middleby by 237.2% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 366,293 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $49,614,000 after purchasing an additional 257,669 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC acquired a new position in shares of Middleby during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,930,000. 98.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.