MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) Cut to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report published on Friday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush restated an outperform rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients from $100.00 to $95.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday.

MGP Ingredients Price Performance

MGPI stock opened at $80.54 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.77 billion, a PE ratio of 16.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.76. The company’s 50-day moving average is $82.46 and its 200-day moving average is $89.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 4.51 and a quick ratio of 1.47. MGP Ingredients has a 1 year low of $75.78 and a 1 year high of $124.96.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.38 by $0.26. MGP Ingredients had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 16.03%. The business had revenue of $214.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $206.87 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that MGP Ingredients will post 6.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MGP Ingredients Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. MGP Ingredients’s dividend payout ratio is currently 10.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MGP Ingredients

In other MGP Ingredients news, VP Erika Lapish bought 500 shares of MGP Ingredients stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $77.86 per share, for a total transaction of $38,930.00. Following the acquisition, the vice president now directly owns 550 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,823. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 28.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MGP Ingredients

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Tudor Investment Corp Et Al purchased a new stake in shares of MGP Ingredients in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,985,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of MGP Ingredients by 58.0% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 217,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,932,000 after buying an additional 79,791 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of MGP Ingredients by 594.5% in the fourth quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 19,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after buying an additional 16,290 shares during the last quarter. KLR Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in MGP Ingredients by 5.8% during the third quarter. KLR Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services acquired a new stake in MGP Ingredients during the fourth quarter worth about $221,000. Institutional investors own 77.11% of the company’s stock.

MGP Ingredients Company Profile

MGP Ingredients, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and supply of distilled spirits, branded spirits, and food ingredients in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Distillery Solutions; Branded Spirits; and Ingredient Solutions.