Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) Shares Gap Down to $132.96

The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $132.96, but opened at $129.57. Middleby shares last traded at $130.91, with a volume of 47,846 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. William Blair upgraded shares of Middleby to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of Middleby from $166.00 to $159.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Middleby from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $145.00 to $118.00 in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Middleby currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $153.43.

Middleby Trading Down 1.9 %

The company has a current ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $7.01 billion, a PE ratio of 18.16 and a beta of 1.58. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $145.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $141.85.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $926.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $979.05 million. Middleby had a return on equity of 15.88% and a net margin of 9.82%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.19 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that The Middleby Co. will post 9.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 235 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.18, for a total transaction of $32,237.30. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $989,204.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,220,519.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 235 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.18, for a total transaction of $32,237.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $989,204.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,585 shares of company stock worth $238,372. 1.17% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Middleby

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MIDD. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Middleby in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Middleby by 1,246.2% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 175 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Middleby by 230.1% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 241 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC acquired a new stake in Middleby in the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC grew its position in Middleby by 620.0% in the 1st quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 360 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. 98.55% of the stock is currently 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.