The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $163.8333.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MIDD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Middleby from $125.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Barclays set a $168.00 target price on Middleby and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Zacks Research upgraded Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Middleby in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th.

Insider Transactions at Middleby

In other Middleby news, Director Robert A. Nerbonne bought 780 shares of Middleby stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $128.52 per share, with a total value of $100,245.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 21,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,759,452.92. This represents a 3.77% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 6.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Middleby

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oak Thistle LLC lifted its position in Middleby by 345.9% during the 4th quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 11,169 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,660,000 after acquiring an additional 8,664 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Middleby during the fourth quarter worth $11,980,000. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Pacific Capital Partners Ltd now owns 21,681 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,223,000 after purchasing an additional 5,555 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Middleby in the 4th quarter valued at $218,000. Finally, Balefire LLC increased its stake in Middleby by 19.2% in the 4th quarter. Balefire LLC now owns 15,003 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,230,000 after buying an additional 2,415 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

Middleby Price Performance

MIDD stock opened at $146.37 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $139.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.59. Middleby has a 12-month low of $110.82 and a 12-month high of $182.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The company has a market capitalization of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of -33.27 and a beta of 1.39.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $982.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $961.21 million. Middleby had a positive return on equity of 14.66% and a negative net margin of 5.22%.Middleby’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.33 EPS. Middleby has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.990-9.140 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 2.190-2.340 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Middleby will post 9.11 EPS for the current year.

Trending Headlines about Middleby

Here are the key news stories impacting Middleby this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks kept a “Strong‑Buy” rating on MIDD, which may temper downside from the estimate cuts by signaling continued conviction in the company’s medium‑term outlook. MarketBeat MIDD page
• Neutral Sentiment: The consensus full‑year EPS view remains roughly intact (market consensus ~ $9.11), so the revisions are mostly small tweaks to timing rather than a large downward reset to long‑term expectations.
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks trimmed FY2027 EPS to $9.24 from $9.35 and cut FY2026 to $9.21 from $9.31 — modest downward revisions that reduce upside vs. prior estimates.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple quarterly forecasts were lowered: Q2 2026 to $2.32 (from $2.39), Q3 2026 to $2.22 (from $2.24), Q4 2026 to $2.80 (from $2.82), Q1 2027 to $1.87 (from $1.89), Q2 2027 to $2.42 (from $2.45), Q3 2027 to $2.39 (from $2.41), and Q4 2027 to $2.56 (from $2.59). These across‑the‑board small cuts suggest slightly weaker near‑term cadence but not a structural earnings downgrade.

Middleby Company Profile

Middleby Corporation is a global manufacturer and distributor of commercial foodservice and food processing equipment. The company designs, engineers and markets a wide range of cooking, baking, refrigeration, warewashing, holding and dispensing solutions. Middleby’s products serve restaurants, hotels, convenience stores, institutional cafeterias, cruise ships and other foodservice operators.

The company’s portfolio spans multiple well-known brands, including Blodgett ovens, TurboChef rapid‐cook ovens, Southbend ranges and broilers, Pitco fryers, and Viking residential and commercial kitchen appliances.