Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $163.85 and last traded at $162.82, with a volume of 853932 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $145.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MIDD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $155.00 price objective on shares of Middleby in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price target (down from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.67.

Middleby Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $8.85 billion, a PE ratio of 22.60 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $138.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.88.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.48 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $942.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $996.60 million. Middleby had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.14%. The firm’s revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.35 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 9.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middleby

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 133.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 306.5% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 252 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 93.2% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 282 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 820.0% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 322 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 91.8% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 489 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

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.