Earnest Partners LLC Acquires 15,090 Shares of MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI)

Earnest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI) by 16.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 109,226 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 15,090 shares during the quarter. Earnest Partners LLC owned approximately 0.50% of MGP Ingredients worth $8,126,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of MGPI. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of MGP Ingredients by 477.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Isthmus Partners LLC grew its stake in MGP Ingredients by 2.1% in the second quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 41,427 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 860 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in MGP Ingredients in the second quarter worth about $42,000. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MGP Ingredients during the first quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of MGP Ingredients by 23.3% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MGPI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MGP Ingredients from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price objective on shares of MGP Ingredients in a research report on Thursday, July 25th.

MGP Ingredients Stock Performance

MGPI opened at $81.96 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 6.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $84.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.66. MGP Ingredients, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.86 and a 52-week high of $109.41.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $190.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.06 million. MGP Ingredients had a net margin of 12.18% and a return on equity of 14.98%. MGP Ingredients’s revenue was down 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MGP Ingredients, Inc. will post 6.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MGP Ingredients Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. MGP Ingredients’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Karen Seaberg sold 1,109 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.14, for a total value of $99,965.26. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 134,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,166,105.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 36.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.