Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $7.99 Million Stock Position in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 354.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 44,713 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,879 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB owned 0.15% of Badger Meter worth $7,985,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 3.1% during the third quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,927 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. increased its stake in Badger Meter by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 2,945 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $526,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS raised its holdings in Badger Meter by 33.4% during the third quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 9,623 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,718,000 after buying an additional 2,407 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 26.2% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 37,846 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $6,759,000 after buying an additional 7,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 13.9% in the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 6,718 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,200,000 after buying an additional 818 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BMI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $191.00 target price (down from $229.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $166.00 price objective on Badger Meter and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Badger Meter from $232.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays set a $136.00 price target on Badger Meter and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Argus lowered Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $181.88.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE BMI opened at $152.33 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $174.97. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.14 and a 52-week high of $256.08. The company has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a PE ratio of 31.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.87.

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

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.33%.

Insider Activity

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst purchased 3,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $152.42 per share, for a total transaction of $502,986.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 40,013 shares in the company, valued at $6,098,781.46. The trade was a 8.99% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Wrocklage acquired 1,650 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was bought at an average price of $152.35 per share, for a total transaction of $251,377.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 19,541 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,977,071.35. The trade was a 9.22% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.90% 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.