Heartland Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Miller Industries, Inc. $MLR

Heartland Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Miller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLR) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 120,000 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,466,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned about 1.06% of Miller Industries as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MLR. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Miller Industries by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 6,624 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Miller Industries by 66.5% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 824 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Miller Industries by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,141 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Miller Industries by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 7,977 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $298,000 after purchasing an additional 556 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in shares of Miller Industries by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 906 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. 79.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MLR. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Miller Industries in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. DA Davidson upped their target price on Miller Industries from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Miller Industries from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Miller Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $50.00.

Miller Industries Stock Performance

NYSE:MLR opened at $49.57 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company has a market cap of $565.08 million, a P/E ratio of 36.99 and a beta of 1.10. Miller Industries, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.81 and a fifty-two week high of $52.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $48.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $45.56.

Miller Industries (NYSE:MLR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The auto parts company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.22 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $180.86 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $181.10 million. Miller Industries had a net margin of 2.08% and a return on equity of 3.70%. Analysts expect that Miller Industries, Inc. will post 1.9 EPS for the current year.

Miller Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a $0.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Miller Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.69%.

About Miller Industries

Miller Industries, Inc is a leading designer, engineer and manufacturer of towing and recovery vehicles and related equipment. The company’s product portfolio includes light-, medium- and heavy-duty tow trucks, integrated carriers, rotators, wreckers, trailers and associated hydraulic and electronic components. These products are marketed under well-known brand names, including Miller, Century, Holmes, Vulcan, Chevron and Jige International, serving a broad spectrum of customers in the towing, recovery, roadside assistance and vehicle transport industries.

Headquartered in Ooltewah, Tennessee, Miller Industries was founded in the early 1990s and has grown into a global supplier of towing and recovery solutions.