Summit Global Investments Makes New $659,000 Investment in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Summit Global Investments bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 3,106 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 2,457.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 179 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at $39,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 261.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 597 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE:BMI opened at $189.36 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $210.42 and its 200-day moving average is $213.75. The company has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.77, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52-week low of $151.18 and a 52-week high of $239.11.

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

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is 32.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on BMI. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group increased their price target on Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $218.75.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other news, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total value of $240,571.78. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,064,640.24. This represents a 18.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $3,371,151.02. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 34,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,332,720.14. This trade represents a 31.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 in the last 90 days. 0.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.