Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI Shares Purchased by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 67.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,703 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 3,091 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 8,649 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,119,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 1,296 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $317,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its position in Badger Meter by 27.3% in the third quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 6.1% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Monument Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 0.4% in the second quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 15,588 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,818,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on BMI. Weiss Ratings downgraded Badger Meter from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $208.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $240.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Robert W. Baird set a $205.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Friday, December 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $220.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $218.25.

Badger Meter Trading Up 0.8%

BMI stock opened at $171.92 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $177.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $187.35. The company has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.58, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.91. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $162.17 and a twelve month high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $235.65 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $231.88 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 21.12%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Investors of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 21st. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.04%.

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.