Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Stock Position Decreased by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 344,786 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 5,592 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 1.17% of Badger Meter worth $65,596,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in BMI. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter valued at about $65,448,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 21,179.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167,040 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $31,779,000 after purchasing an additional 166,255 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 184.6% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 256,217 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $54,350,000 after purchasing an additional 166,191 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $20,586,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 111.1% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 182,382 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $38,687,000 after purchasing an additional 95,966 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on BMI. Argus set a $240.00 price target on Badger Meter in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price target on Badger Meter in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $238.40.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

BMI opened at $190.92 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $224.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $216.96. The firm has a market cap of $5.63 billion, a PE ratio of 41.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.84. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $162.17 and a twelve month high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $238.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $235.38 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 15.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This is an increase from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 29.63%.

Badger Meter Profile

Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions worldwide. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities market. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline, including water, air, steam, and other liquids and gases to original equipment manufacturers as the primary flow measurement device within a product or system, as well as through manufacturers' representatives.