Fiera Capital Corp Sells 238,329 Shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Fiera Capital Corp trimmed its stake in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD - Free Report) by 18.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,080,224 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 238,329 shares during the period. Fiera Capital Corp owned 2.02% of Middleby worth $158,977,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Middleby by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,552 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $375,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in shares of Middleby by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 23,362 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,990,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 5,728 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $843,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Mendota Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Middleby by 13.5% in the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 1,090 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $160,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Middleby by 230.1% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 241 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on MIDD shares. William Blair upgraded shares of Middleby to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Middleby from $166.00 to $159.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.14.

Insider Transactions at Middleby

In other news, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.12, for a total value of $153,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 7,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,220,519.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Middleby news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 350 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.47, for a total value of $53,014.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,306 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $955,169.82. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.12, for a total value of $153,120.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,220,519.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,585 shares of company stock worth $238,372. 1.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Middleby Price Performance

Shares of MIDD stock traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $133.08. The company had a trading volume of 390,218 shares, compared to its average volume of 378,951. The Middleby Co. has a 12-month low of $109.59 and a 12-month high of $161.01. The company has a market capitalization of $7.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.53 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 2.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $146.78 and a 200-day moving average of $141.19.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The industrial products company reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.05 by ($0.16). Middleby had a net margin of 9.82% and a return on equity of 15.88%. The firm had revenue of $926.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $979.05 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.19 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 9.98 earnings per share for the current year.

About Middleby

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MIDD? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.