Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Takes $1.28 Million Position in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 9,454 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,281,000.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Amundi lifted its stake in Middleby by 43.6% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 371,854 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $50,037,000 after purchasing an additional 112,855 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Middleby during the fourth quarter worth approximately $11,312,000. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in Middleby by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 15,592 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,112,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Middleby in the 4th quarter valued at $2,238,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Middleby by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 348,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,167,000 after acquiring an additional 3,832 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MIDD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Middleby from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Middleby from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on Middleby from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $180.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Middleby

In other news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total value of $81,755.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,209.61. This trade represents a 7.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Middleby Stock Up 1.0 %

NASDAQ:MIDD opened at $154.90 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.37 and a beta of 1.72. The Middleby Co. has a 52 week low of $118.41 and a 52 week high of $182.73. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $158.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $145.01.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.38. Middleby had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $996.69 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 9.11 EPS for the current 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.