Handelsbanken Fonder AB Reduces Stock Holdings in Mueller Water Products $MWA

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its holdings in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) by 21.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 41,236 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 11,100 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $991,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 430.1% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 21,320 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $542,000 after buying an additional 17,298 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Mueller Water Products by 16.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,795,482 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $503,201,000 after acquiring an additional 2,840,895 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Mueller Water Products by 27.2% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 100,344 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,551,000 after acquiring an additional 21,434 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 6.3% in the first quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 915,493 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $23,272,000 after acquiring an additional 54,355 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter worth approximately $360,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MWA opened at $24.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 3.86 and a quick ratio of 2.56. Mueller Water Products has a 1 year low of $21.35 and a 1 year high of $28.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of 25.79, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.18. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $24.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.04.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 24th. The industrial products company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 10.67%.The company had revenue of $237.40 million for the quarter. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 20th. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 10th. This is a boost from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $29.00.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,070 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.78 per share, for a total transaction of $27,584.60. Following the acquisition, the director owned 16,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $433,104. The trade was a 6.80% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.