Analysts Set The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) Price Target at $180.86

Shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $180.86.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price objective (down from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on shares of Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Middleby from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th.

Middleby Stock Performance

Shares of MIDD stock opened at $152.76 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $161.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.93. The stock has a market cap of $8.19 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Middleby has a 12 month low of $118.41 and a 12 month high of $182.73.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.38. Middleby had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $996.69 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. Middleby’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Middleby will post 9.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Middleby

In related news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $81,755.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,209.61. This represents a 7.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Middleby

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in MIDD. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 820.0% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 322 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Middleby by 41.1% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 398 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Middleby during the 4th quarter valued at $71,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Middleby by 16.0% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Middleby by 220.6% in the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. 98.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Middleby

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.