Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $169.00 to $162.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Zacks Research raised shares of Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Seaport Research Partners set a $160.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Badger Meter from $172.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $112.00 price target (up from $109.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $164.00.

Badger Meter Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $132.19 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $137.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.15. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.89, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.65. Badger Meter has a 1 year low of $112.09 and a 1 year high of $204.00.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.01. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 18.03%. The business had revenue of $220.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.59 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.17 earnings per share. Badger Meter’s revenue was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Badger Meter will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 28th will be issued a $0.44 dividend. This is a boost from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 28th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is presently 37.38%.

Insider Activity

In other Badger Meter news, VP Edward F. Callahan acquired 751 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $101,572.75. Following the purchase, the vice president owned 1,937 shares in the company, valued at $261,979.25. This represents a 63.32% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Badger Meter

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth about $227,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $717,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in shares of 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 worth $572,000 after buying an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $200,000. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 11.2% during the 2nd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 50,225 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $12,303,000 after buying an additional 5,041 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

About Badger Meter

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.