MGP Ingredients, Inc. (MGPI) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.12 on September 2nd

MGP Ingredients, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGPI – Get Rating) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, August 4th, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 19th will be given a dividend of 0.12 per share on Friday, September 2nd. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 18th.

MGP Ingredients has a dividend payout ratio of 9.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect MGP Ingredients to earn $4.75 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 10.1%.

MGP Ingredients Price Performance

MGP Ingredients stock opened at $109.03 on Friday. MGP Ingredients has a 52-week low of $60.43 and a 52-week high of $109.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 4.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $99.16 and its 200 day moving average is $90.48. The company has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.49 and a beta of 1.01.

MGP Ingredients (NASDAQ:MGPI – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 4th. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.27. MGP Ingredients had a net margin of 16.12% and a return on equity of 16.09%. The firm had revenue of $195.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $173.06 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that MGP Ingredients will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at MGP Ingredients

In other news, VP David E. Dykstra sold 1,571 shares of MGP Ingredients stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.48, for a total transaction of $149,999.08. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 13,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,312,945.48. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other MGP Ingredients news, VP David E. Dykstra sold 1,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.48, for a total value of $149,999.08. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 13,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,312,945.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Stephen J. Glaser sold 1,000 shares of MGP Ingredients stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.28, for a total transaction of $101,280.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 20,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,064,896.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,202 shares of company stock worth $1,120,098. 36.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of MGP Ingredients

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its position in MGP Ingredients by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 10,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $924,000 after purchasing an additional 1,331 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in MGP Ingredients by 35.5% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 9,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $792,000 after buying an additional 2,425 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC purchased a new stake in MGP Ingredients during the first quarter worth $784,000. Graham Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in MGP Ingredients during the first quarter worth $652,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in MGP Ingredients by 54.9% during the 1st quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 7,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $638,000 after acquiring an additional 2,640 shares in the last quarter. 77.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Roth Capital started coverage on MGP Ingredients in a research note on Thursday, June 30th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $115.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.50.

About MGP Ingredients

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MGP Ingredients, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces and supplies distilled spirits, branded spirits, and food ingredients. It operates through three segments: Distillery Products; Branded Spirits; and Ingredient Solutions. The Distillery Products segment provides food grade alcohol for beverage applications that include bourbon and rye whiskeys, as well as grain neutral spirits, including vodka and gin; and food-grade industrial alcohol, which is used as an ingredient in foods, personal care products, cleaning solutions, pharmaceuticals, and various other products.