Ethic Inc. Trims Position in The Middleby Corporation $MIDD

Ethic Inc. reduced its position in The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD) by 71.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,277 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,718 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Middleby were worth $303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MIDD. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Middleby by 0.6% in the second quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 692,764 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $99,758,000 after acquiring an additional 4,204 shares during the last quarter. Vestor Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Middleby by 268.0% in the 2nd quarter. Vestor Capital LLC now owns 3,680 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 2,680 shares during the period. Bryce Point Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Middleby in the 2nd quarter valued at about $883,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Middleby during the 2nd quarter worth about $478,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new stake in Middleby during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $11,701,000. 98.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Middleby Trading Up 3.8%

NASDAQ:MIDD opened at $156.45 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.56 and a beta of 1.39. The Middleby Corporation has a one year low of $110.82 and a one year high of $182.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 2.07. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $131.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.00.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.34. Middleby had a positive return on equity of 14.66% and a negative net margin of 5.22%.The firm had revenue of $982.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $961.21 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.33 EPS. Middleby’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Middleby has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.990-9.140 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.190-2.340 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that The Middleby Corporation will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Middleby

In related news, Director Robert A. Nerbonne acquired 780 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $128.52 per share, for a total transaction of $100,245.60. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 21,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,759,452.92. The trade was a 3.77% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 6.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MIDD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Middleby in a report on Friday, December 5th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Middleby from $171.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Middleby from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $125.00 in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Barclays set a $168.00 target price on Middleby and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Middleby currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $161.33.

Middleby Profile

Middleby Corporation is a global manufacturer and distributor of commercial foodservice and food processing equipment. The company designs, engineers and markets a wide range of cooking, baking, refrigeration, warewashing, holding and dispensing solutions. Middleby’s products serve restaurants, hotels, convenience stores, institutional cafeterias, cruise ships and other foodservice operators.

The company’s portfolio spans multiple well-known brands, including Blodgett ovens, TurboChef rapid‐cook ovens, Southbend ranges and broilers, Pitco fryers, and Viking residential and commercial kitchen appliances.