Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Rating Increased to Outperform at Robert W. Baird

Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research note released on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $173.00 price objective on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $165.00.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on BMI. Stifel Nicolaus set a $166.00 price target on Badger Meter and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $220.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $191.00 target price (down from $229.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $182.88.

Badger Meter Trading Up 1.7%

BMI stock opened at $148.29 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $153.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $169.76. Badger Meter has a 1-year low of $139.14 and a 1-year high of $256.08. The firm has a market cap of $4.33 billion, a PE ratio of 30.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.87.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.01). Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 20.71%. The business had revenue of $220.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $232.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.04 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Badger Meter will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter

In other news, VP Kimberly K. Stoll sold 1,634 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.01, for a total transaction of $243,482.34. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 3,256 shares in the company, valued at $485,176.56. The trade was a 33.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Fred J. Begale sold 2,064 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $309,600.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 3,040 shares in the company, valued at $456,000. The trade was a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,989 shares of company stock worth $596,002. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at about $227,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 328.0% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,766 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $717,000 after acquiring an additional 2,886 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Badger Meter by 10.6% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 2,334 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $572,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Badger Meter by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 19,320 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,732,000 after acquiring an additional 1,909 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in Badger Meter by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,050 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Company Profile

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company’s core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company’s product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.