Raymond James Financial Inc. Sells 15,253 Shares of The Middleby Corporation $MIDD

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its stake in The Middleby Corporation by 18.3%, selling 15,253 shares and owning approximately 0.13% of the company worth $10.4 million at the end of the quarter.
• Various analysts have offered mixed insights on Middleby, with Zacks Research labeling it a "strong sell" and Barclays providing an "overweight" rating with a price target reduced to $165.
• The Middleby Corporation reported $2.35 EPS in its latest earnings, exceeding estimates but with a 1.4% revenue decline compared to the previous year.

Raymond James Financial Inc. lessened its holdings in The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD - Free Report) by 18.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 68,263 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 15,253 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.13% of Middleby worth $10,375,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 116.7% in 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 in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. raised its stake in Middleby by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,223 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $946,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Middleby by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 11,020 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,675,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 2.9% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 3,566 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $542,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Neuberger Berman Group LLC lifted its holdings in Middleby by 2.3% in the first quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 5,990 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $910,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. 98.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Middleby Stock Up 1.9%

MIDD stock traded up $2.73 during trading on Friday, reaching $144.54. The stock had a trading volume of 206,199 shares, compared to its average volume of 906,267. The Middleby Corporation has a 1-year low of $118.09 and a 1-year high of $182.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $7.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.35 and a beta of 1.54. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $140.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $144.31.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $977.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $979.59 million. Middleby had a net margin of 11.06% and a return on equity of 14.14%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.39 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Middleby Corporation will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on MIDD shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Middleby from $188.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Zacks Research upgraded Middleby to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered Middleby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on Middleby from $162.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Middleby from $180.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $161.13.

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.