The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) Position Increased by Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) by 349.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,443 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.’s holdings in Middleby were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Middleby by 121.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,423 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $615,000 after buying an additional 2,425 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of Middleby during the 4th quarter worth $469,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. bought a new position in shares of Middleby during the 4th quarter valued at $219,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Middleby by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 22,929 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,106,000 after purchasing an additional 2,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Olstein Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Middleby by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Olstein Capital Management L.P. now owns 71,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,617,000 after purchasing an additional 2,500 shares in the last quarter. 98.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Middleby Stock Performance

NASDAQ MIDD opened at $151.98 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $161.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $146.32. The Middleby Co. has a 52-week low of $118.41 and a 52-week high of $182.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.81 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.96 and a beta of 1.72.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $996.69 million. Middleby had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.14%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that The Middleby Co. will post 9.11 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MIDD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $160.00 price target (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays boosted their target price on Middleby from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com upgraded Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Middleby has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $180.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total transaction of $81,755.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,209.61. The trade was a 7.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.