KBC Group NV Trims Holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

KBC Group NV decreased its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,375,170 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 170,632 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.88% of Mueller Water Products worth $30,941,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Mueller Water Products by 369.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 98,457 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 77,467 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 361.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 266,155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,775,000 after purchasing an additional 208,502 shares in the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 390,199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,467,000 after purchasing an additional 64,399 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products in the third quarter worth $451,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 28.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 347,199 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,534,000 after buying an additional 77,772 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In related news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 57,948 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.69, for a total transaction of $1,488,684.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at $1,110,424.56. This represents a 57.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.40, for a total value of $263,300.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 136,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,328,282. The trade was a 7.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 98,433 shares of company stock valued at $2,494,144. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE MWA opened at $23.15 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.17. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.49 and a twelve month high of $26.28. The company has a market capitalization of $3.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.72, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.38.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22. The company had revenue of $348.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $324.80 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 8.82%. Mueller Water Products’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.19 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MWA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 target price (up from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com lowered Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.20.

About Mueller Water Products

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.