Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 3,254 Shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its stake in shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 221,956 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,254 shares during the quarter. Middleby comprises about 1.4% of Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Middleby were worth $30,064,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Middleby by 4.0% in the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,278 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Middleby by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 6,259 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $871,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 5.2% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,868 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Middleby by 133.3% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 231 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Middleby by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 622 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

Middleby Price Performance

NASDAQ:MIDD opened at $142.96 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $138.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 2.81 and a quick ratio of 1.70. The company has a market cap of $7.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72 and a beta of 1.61. The Middleby Co. has a one year low of $118.41 and a one year high of $161.01.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.48 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $942.81 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $996.60 million. Middleby had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 14.66%. Middleby’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.35 EPS. Equities analysts expect that The Middleby Co. will post 9.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MIDD. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 price objective (down from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com upgraded Middleby from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price target on shares of Middleby in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.67.

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.