MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) Major Shareholder Caroline Lux Kaplan Sells 30,000 Shares

MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) major shareholder Caroline Lux Kaplan sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.85, for a total value of $715,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 560,958 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,378,848.30. The trade was a 5.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

MGP Ingredients Trading Down 0.8%

MGP Ingredients stock opened at $22.51 on Friday. MGP Ingredients, Inc. has a one year low of $22.40 and a one year high of $48.44. The business’s fifty day moving average is $24.94 and its 200 day moving average is $28.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $479.22 million, a PE ratio of -33.59 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.23. The business had revenue of $130.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $128.33 million. MGP Ingredients had a positive return on equity of 9.65% and a negative net margin of 2.56%.MGP Ingredients’s revenue was down 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.29 EPS. MGP Ingredients has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.600-2.750 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that MGP Ingredients, Inc. will post 5.56 EPS for the current year.

MGP Ingredients Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. MGP Ingredients’s payout ratio is currently -71.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MGPI shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of MGP Ingredients in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on MGP Ingredients from $30.00 to $27.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on MGP Ingredients from $38.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.00.

Institutional Trading of MGP Ingredients

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MGPI. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in shares of MGP Ingredients by 183.3% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 743,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,274,000 after buying an additional 480,885 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 1,564.2% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 214,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,289,000 after acquiring an additional 201,197 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in MGP Ingredients during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,702,000. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in MGP Ingredients by 116.6% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 359,813 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,571,000 after purchasing an additional 193,660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of MGP Ingredients by 8.9% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,222,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,576,000 after purchasing an additional 99,995 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.11% 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.