The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ:MIDD) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 1,657,455 shares, a decline of 17.0% from the February 12th total of 1,996,915 shares. Approximately 3.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 593,018 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Based on an average daily volume of 593,018 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately 3.7% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MIDD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Middleby in a report on Monday, December 29th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Middleby from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research lowered Middleby from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $187.00 target price on Middleby and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Middleby from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.17.

Institutional Trading of Middleby

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Middleby by 49.2% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,772,249 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $858,161,000 after acquiring an additional 1,902,957 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Middleby by 1,046.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,018,536 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $135,394,000 after buying an additional 929,688 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Middleby by 4,256.3% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 722,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $107,361,000 after buying an additional 705,560 shares during the last quarter. SG Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Middleby during the 3rd quarter worth $55,260,000. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP acquired a new stake in shares of Middleby in the 4th quarter worth $48,113,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.55% of the company’s stock.

Middleby Stock Up 1.0%

MIDD stock traded up $1.37 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $143.29. 481,290 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 604,832. The company has a market cap of $6.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -25.01 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 1.92 and a current ratio of 2.57. Middleby has a 1-year low of $110.82 and a 1-year high of $169.44. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $155.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $141.03.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The industrial products company reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by ($0.13). Middleby had a negative net margin of 7.44% and a positive return on equity of 14.57%. The company had revenue of $334.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.88 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Middleby has set its FY 2026 guidance at 9.200-9.360 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.900-2.020 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Middleby will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current year.

About Middleby

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.