Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $30.20.

Several research analysts have issued reports on MWA shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays began coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price target on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In related news, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.39, for a total value of $1,055,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 42,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,052.84. This trade represents a 48.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Brian Healy purchased 1,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $25.33 per share, for a total transaction of $29,965.39. Following the transaction, the director owned 24,946 shares in the company, valued at $631,882.18. This represents a 4.98% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 52,598 shares of company stock valued at $1,360,685 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the first quarter valued at about $1,571,000. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth about $75,400,000. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth about $2,222,000. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Mueller Water Products by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 123,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,939,000 after buying an additional 45,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,516,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 3.9%

Mueller Water Products stock opened at $23.02 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.59 billion, a PE ratio of 16.32, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.01. Mueller Water Products has a 12-month low of $22.74 and a 12-month high of $31.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $25.00 and its 200 day moving average is $26.34. The company has a quick ratio of 3.08, a current ratio of 4.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.11. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 15.02% and a return on equity of 23.55%. The business had revenue of $395.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.49 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.34 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is presently 19.86%.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc designs and manufactures products used to support the operation, maintenance, and monitoring of water distribution and wastewater infrastructure. Its offerings include gate, butterfly, and check valves; fire hydrants; pipe fittings; and related products used to control and manage the flow of water through municipal and other utility systems.

The company also provides technologies and services intended to help utilities monitor their networks, identify leaks, improve asset management, and enhance operational efficiency.