Lord Abbett & CO. LLC Makes New $19.65 Million Investment in The Middleby Corporation $MIDD

Key Points

• Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new stake in The Middleby Corporation, purchasing 129,300 shares valued at approximately $19.65 million, equating to 0.24% ownership of the company.
• Director Edward P. Garden significantly increased his position by buying 137,000 shares for around $20.28 million, enhancing his total holdings to over 3.27 million shares.
• Middleby reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.35 for the last quarter, surpassing estimates by $0.15, yet experienced a 1.4% decline in revenue year-over-year.

Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new position in shares of The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 129,300 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $19,651,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC owned approximately 0.24% of Middleby at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Middleby by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 169 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Middleby by 760.0% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 258 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC boosted its position in Middleby by 220.6% during the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 417 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 60.3% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 638 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Middleby by 44.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 901 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $137,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on MIDD shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Middleby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 20th. Barclays reduced their price target on Middleby from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Middleby from $145.00 to $125.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Robert W. Baird cut their price target on Middleby from $188.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Middleby to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $159.00.

Middleby Stock Performance

Middleby stock traded down $0.1640 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $130.2360. 206,194 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 911,435. The Middleby Corporation has a 12 month low of $118.09 and a 12 month high of $182.73. The business has a 50 day moving average of $141.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57 and a beta of 1.58.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.15. Middleby had a return on equity of 14.14% and a net margin of 11.06%.The business had revenue of $977.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $979.59 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that The Middleby Corporation will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current year.

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.