MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) Trading 5.5% Higher – Still a Buy?

MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) rose 5.5% on Monday . The company traded as high as $36.74 and last traded at $36.57. Approximately 248,404 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 43% from the average daily volume of 434,974 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.65.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on MGPI shares. Loop Capital set a $75.00 target price on MGP Ingredients in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients from $58.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of MGP Ingredients from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Roth Mkm cut their target price on shares of MGP Ingredients from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen cut shares of MGP Ingredients from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $66.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $71.29.

MGP Ingredients Trading Up 5.8 %

The company has a market cap of $804.80 million, a PE ratio of 7.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $44.10 and its 200-day moving average is $66.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 6.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $161.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $161.55 million. MGP Ingredients had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 14.44%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MGP Ingredients, Inc. will post 5.57 EPS for the current year.

MGP Ingredients Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. MGP Ingredients’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.98%.

Insider Transactions at MGP Ingredients

In related news, Director Lori L.S. Mingus sold 7,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.03, for a total transaction of $324,511.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 37,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,720,279.19. This trade represents a 15.87 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 36.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MGP Ingredients

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MGPI. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of MGP Ingredients in the second quarter valued at approximately $22,028,000. Ariel Investments LLC raised its stake in MGP Ingredients by 92.7% in the second quarter. Ariel Investments LLC now owns 515,796 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,375,000 after buying an additional 248,076 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 14.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,102,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,824,000 after buying an additional 137,292 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its position in MGP Ingredients by 22.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 717,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,746,000 after acquiring an additional 131,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portolan Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of MGP Ingredients in the 3rd quarter valued at $6,777,000. 77.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MGP Ingredients

MGP Ingredients, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and supply of distilled spirits, branded spirits, and food ingredients in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Distillery Solutions; Branded Spirits; and Ingredient Solutions.