Signaturefd LLC Cuts Stake in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Signaturefd LLC reduced its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 9.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 617 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 65 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BMI. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 100.0% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 83.0% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 194 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the first quarter worth $37,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the first quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the first quarter worth $45,000. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on BMI. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, September 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $237.00.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $180.93 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $183.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $209.57. The company has a market cap of $5.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.90. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $162.17 and a fifty-two week high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $238.10 million during 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 was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.86%.

About Badger Meter

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.