UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Cuts Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd decreased its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,062 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,600 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $5,953,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at about $20,586,000. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its stake 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 valued at $77,034,000 after buying an additional 68,137 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at $10,462,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,841,879 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $814,939,000 after buying an additional 44,839 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 348.5% in the third 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 period. 89.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on BMI shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Thursday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $225.20.

Badger Meter Trading Up 0.4 %

Badger Meter stock opened at $193.18 on Friday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12-month low of $151.18 and a 12-month high of $239.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.67, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $209.05 and a 200 day moving average of $213.51.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 32.15%.

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter

In related news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total value of $31,395.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were 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 directly owns 34,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,332,720.14. This trade represents a 31.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

About Badger Meter

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.