MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $71.29.

MGPI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Lake Street Capital cut shares of MGP Ingredients from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of MGP Ingredients from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Loop Capital set a $75.00 price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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.

Insider Activity at MGP Ingredients

In related news, Director Lori L.S. Mingus sold 7,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $1,720,279.19. This represents a 15.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 36.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 90.0% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 340,453 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,404,000 after purchasing an additional 161,295 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP bought a new position in MGP Ingredients in the 4th quarter worth $28,388,000. Mariner LLC raised its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 24.3% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 67,374 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,653,000 after purchasing an additional 13,189 shares in the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP raised its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 238.3% in the 4th quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 83,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 58,999 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 60.4% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 85,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,371,000 after purchasing an additional 32,252 shares in the last quarter. 77.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MGP Ingredients Price Performance

MGPI stock opened at $32.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 6.46 and a quick ratio of 1.94. MGP Ingredients has a one year low of $31.81 and a one year high of $92.90. The stock has a market cap of $710.52 million, a PE ratio of 6.73 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $38.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.97.

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.