State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Trims Position in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D decreased its position in shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) by 7.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 24,833 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,139 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Middleby were worth $3,655,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Middleby by 230.1% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 241 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Clear Street Markets LLC purchased a new position in Middleby during the third quarter worth approximately $50,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in Middleby by 80.2% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 510 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. Mendota Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Middleby by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Mendota Financial Group LLC now owns 1,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Naples Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Middleby during the fourth quarter worth approximately $221,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MIDD shares. TheStreet raised shares of Middleby from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Middleby from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Middleby from $140.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Middleby currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $159.38.

Insider Transactions at Middleby

In other news, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.12, for a total value of $153,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,220,519.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, Director Cathy L. Mccarthy sold 1,000 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 350 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.47, for a total transaction of $53,014.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,306 shares in the company, valued at $955,169.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.16% of the company’s stock.

Middleby Price Performance

Shares of MIDD stock opened at $141.25 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $7.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.06 and a beta of 1.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.31 and a quick ratio of 1.21. The Middleby Co. has a 1-year low of $109.59 and a 1-year high of $161.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $151.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $139.20.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. Middleby had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 16.99%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.57 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 10.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Middleby 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.