Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Raises Stock Position in MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) by 313.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 70,887 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 53,762 shares during the quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned 0.32% of MGP Ingredients worth $2,791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MGPI. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in MGP Ingredients by 162.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 697 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of MGP Ingredients during the 4th quarter worth $75,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of MGP Ingredients by 56.0% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 687 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in shares of MGP Ingredients by 1,167.8% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,778 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 3,480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in MGP Ingredients by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,662 shares of the company’s stock valued at $223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,015 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.11% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of MGP Ingredients from $40.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded MGP Ingredients from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Truist Financial lowered their target price on MGP Ingredients from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Lake Street Capital raised MGP Ingredients from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.33.

MGP Ingredients Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of MGPI opened at $32.98 on Monday. MGP Ingredients, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.12 and a fifty-two week high of $92.52. The company has a market capitalization of $701.55 million, a PE ratio of 6.86 and a beta of 0.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $29.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 6.46.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.05. MGP Ingredients had a return on equity of 14.39% and a net margin of 14.44%. The firm had revenue of $121.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $119.14 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 28.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that MGP Ingredients, Inc. will post 5.56 EPS for the current year.

MGP Ingredients Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. MGP Ingredients’s dividend payout ratio is presently 106.67%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Karen Seaberg sold 28,304 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.82, for a total value of $872,329.28. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 283,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,739,596.58. This trade represents a 9.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Martin Roper bought 15,000 shares of MGP Ingredients stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $33.10 per share, for a total transaction of $496,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 18,180 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $601,758. The trade was a 471.70% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 29,417 shares of company stock valued at $905,556. Insiders own 36.20% of the company’s stock.

About MGP Ingredients

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.