Donaldson Capital Management LLC Makes New $3.08 Million Investment in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 14,529 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,082,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $20,586,000. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 23.1% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 363,164 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $77,034,000 after acquiring an additional 68,137 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $10,462,000. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 348.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,090 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $12,034,000 after acquiring an additional 42,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $7,494,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.1 %

Badger Meter stock opened at $209.81 on Tuesday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.87 and a 1 year high of $239.11. The company has a market cap of $6.17 billion, a PE ratio of 49.60, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The company’s 50-day moving average is $213.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $214.07.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. Research analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Maxim Group upped their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $218.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total value of $3,371,151.02. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,332,720.14. This trade represents a 31.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $31,395.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 20,949 shares of company stock worth $4,398,407. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Company Profile

Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions worldwide. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities market. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline, including water, air, steam, and other liquids and gases to original equipment manufacturers as the primary flow measurement device within a product or system, as well as through manufacturers' representatives.