Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI Shares Acquired by Willis Investment Counsel

Willis Investment Counsel lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 76.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 32,467 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,084 shares during the quarter. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $4,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in BMI. XXEC Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the second quarter valued at approximately $825,029,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter valued at $725,926,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter worth $68,344,000. American Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter worth $38,318,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 2nd quarter worth $31,346,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on BMI. Zacks Research raised Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $172.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Badger Meter from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $169.00 to $162.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $159.38.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, VP Edward Callahan acquired 751 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $135.25 per share, with a total value of $101,572.75. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president owned 1,937 shares in the company, valued at $261,979.25. This trade represents a 63.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BMI traded up $1.23 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $127.48. The stock had a trading volume of 143,035 shares, compared to its average volume of 472,032. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $112.09 and a fifty-two week high of $204.00. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $130.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $132.74. The company has a market cap of $3.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.78, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.64.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.01. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.03% and a net margin of 14.27%. The firm had revenue of $220.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.17 EPS. Badger Meter’s revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.50 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th were given a dividend of $0.44 per share. This is a boost from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 28th. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is currently 41.12%.

Badger Meter Profile

Badger Meter, Inc is a water technology company that develops and manufactures flow measurement, control and communications solutions. Its products are used to measure and manage water across municipal, commercial and industrial applications, helping customers improve operational efficiency, monitor usage and support water conservation.

The company’s offerings include mechanical, ultrasonic and electromagnetic flow meters; valves and related flow-control equipment; and smart water technologies.