Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Shares Down 5.4% – Should You Sell?

Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMIGet Free Report) dropped 5.4% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $133.00 and last traded at $138.0350. Approximately 107,314 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 502,008 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.87.

Badger Meter News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Badger Meter this week:

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $173.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Maxim Group lowered Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays lowered their price target on Badger Meter from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $170.00 price objective on Badger Meter and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $160.00.

View Our Latest Report on BMI

Badger Meter Trading Down 10.4%

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.52, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.64. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $133.84 and its 200 day moving average is $144.81.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMIGet Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $220.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.59 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.56% and a return on equity of 18.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.12%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Robert Wrocklage acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $122.35 per share, for a total transaction of $122,350.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,321 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,853,324.35. This trade represents a 4.48% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Badger Meter

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Annex Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 4.7% in the second quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,301 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,974,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Badger Meter during the 2nd quarter worth about $351,000. Norway Savings Bank increased its position in Badger Meter by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Norway Savings Bank now owns 4,006 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $594,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Badger Meter by 177.1% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 40,888 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $6,067,000 after purchasing an additional 26,132 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter valued at about $785,000. 89.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Badger Meter Company Profile

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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.

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