Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the four research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $31.25.

Several brokerages have issued reports on MWA. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th.

Mueller Water Products Trading Up 2.5%

Shares of MWA stock opened at $26.27 on Thursday. Mueller Water Products has a fifty-two week low of $22.74 and a fifty-two week high of $31.00. The stock has a market cap of $4.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.05, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.03. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.92, a current ratio of 4.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 22.11%. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter. On average, analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is 21.37%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,166 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $25.75 per share, for a total transaction of $30,024.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 23,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $611,897.25. The trade was a 5.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MWA. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 25.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 153,043 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,890,000 after purchasing an additional 30,862 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 87.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 122,472 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,113,000 after buying an additional 57,053 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the first quarter valued at approximately $205,000. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the first quarter worth approximately $212,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 10.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 572,686 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,558,000 after acquiring an additional 56,404 shares during the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc is a leading provider of water infrastructure and flow control products and services designed to help water utilities and municipalities manage, control and measure their water distribution systems. The company’s portfolio includes a comprehensive range of products such as fire hydrants, valves, pipe repair systems, fittings and couplings, along with advanced metering and monitoring solutions. By combining traditional mechanical components with digital technologies, Mueller Water Products addresses the critical need for reliable and sustainable water distribution across North America.

The company’s operations are organized around two primary business segments.