SG Americas Securities LLC Reduces Stake in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

SG Americas Securities LLC lowered its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 68.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,961 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 15,314 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,819,000. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in Badger Meter by 89.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 712,650 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $124,293,000 after purchasing an additional 335,953 shares in the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the third quarter valued at $45,435,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in Badger Meter by 39.2% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 754,402 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $131,592,000 after buying an additional 212,448 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in Badger Meter by 99.5% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 401,668 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $72,203,000 after buying an additional 200,330 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other news, EVP Robert Wrocklage acquired 1,000 shares of Badger Meter stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $122.35 per share, for a total transaction of $122,350.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president owned 23,321 shares in the company, valued at $2,853,324.35. This trade represents a 4.48% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Edward F. Callahan bought 858 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $116.30 per share, with a total value of $99,785.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president directly owned 1,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $137,931.80. The trade was a 261.59% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders bought a total of 6,628 shares of company stock worth $777,128 in the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Badger Meter News Summary

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

• Negative Sentiment: Several law firms are promoting a securities class action against Badger Meter, alleging investor harm tied to possible misrepresentations about the company’s AMI transition and short-cycle municipal ordering practices. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing deadline reminders for the class action may keep legal uncertainty in focus for BMI investors over the next several weeks. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional firms, including Rosen, Schall, Pomerantz, Berger Montague, and Faruqi & Faruqi, issued similar notices repeating the same class-period and deadline information, reinforcing the legal overhang rather than adding new operational news. Article Title

Badger Meter Trading Up 0.6%

Badger Meter stock opened at $146.72 on Friday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12 month low of $112.09 and a 12 month high of $249.56. The company has a market capitalization of $4.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $127.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $148.02.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $220.71 million during the quarter. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.76% and a net margin of 14.56%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is 36.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on BMI shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $140.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $190.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Maxim Group cut shares of Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Badger Meter has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $155.86.

Badger Meter Profile

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.