Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 53,325 Shares of The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. cut its position in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD - Free Report) by 10.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 436,727 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 53,325 shares during the period. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned about 0.81% of Middleby worth $59,155,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 4,494.8% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,266,327 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $171,524,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238,767 shares during the period. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Middleby in the fourth quarter worth $91,869,000. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Middleby in the fourth quarter worth about $26,930,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Middleby in the 4th quarter valued at $20,189,000. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Middleby by 43.6% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 371,854 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,037,000 after acquiring an additional 112,855 shares in the last quarter. 98.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Middleby Price Performance

Shares of Middleby stock traded up $0.61 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $128.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,112,245 shares, compared to its average volume of 679,505. The Middleby Co. has a one year low of $118.41 and a one year high of $182.73. The company has a current ratio of 2.81, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $150.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.66 and a beta of 1.44.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $996.69 million. Middleby had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 9.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on MIDD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Middleby from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Middleby from $160.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Middleby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $179.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Middleby news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total value of $81,755.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,111 shares in the company, valued at approximately $999,209.61. This represents a 7.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.