Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Boosts Stake in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,450,221 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 11,552 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD’s holdings in Middleby were worth $233,182,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Middleby during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Middleby by 1,246.2% during 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 period. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Middleby by 230.1% during 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 period. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Middleby by 620.0% during 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 period. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Middleby during the 1st quarter worth $63,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

Middleby Stock Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ MIDD traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $131.71. The company had a trading volume of 974,624 shares, compared to its average volume of 548,939. The Middleby Co. has a fifty-two week low of $109.59 and a fifty-two week high of $161.01. The company has a market capitalization of $7.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.34 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 1.28. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $125.96 and its 200 day moving average is $139.15.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.16). Middleby had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 15.88%. The company had revenue of $926.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $979.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $159.00 price target on shares of Middleby in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Middleby from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $118.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on Middleby from $175.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 15th. William Blair upgraded Middleby to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Raymond James started coverage on Middleby in a report on Friday, June 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Middleby presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.57.

Insider Activity at Middleby

In related news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 235 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.18, for a total value of $32,237.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,211 shares in the company, valued at approximately $989,204.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 235 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the director now directly owns 7,211 shares in the company, valued at $989,204.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John R. Miller III sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.32, for a total value of $252,640.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,380,803.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 2,385 shares of company stock worth $304,134. Corporate insiders own 1.16% of the company’s stock.

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.