Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 1,041,339 Shares of Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI)

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI) by 8.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 11,704,852 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,041,339 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.10% of Mueller Industries worth $928,897,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MLI. LPL Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Mueller Industries by 59.9% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 161,041 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $12,780,000 after buying an additional 60,354 shares during the period. Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new stake in Mueller Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $670,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in Mueller Industries in the fourth quarter worth about $2,286,000. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Mueller Industries by 167.6% during the fourth quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 6,978 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $554,000 after purchasing an additional 4,370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $244,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.50% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MLI opened at $76.58 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.67 billion, a PE ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 0.99. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $79.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $79.63. Mueller Industries, Inc. has a 1-year low of $50.85 and a 1-year high of $96.81.

Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. Mueller Industries had a net margin of 16.05% and a return on equity of 22.97%.

Mueller Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Mueller Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Mueller Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 18.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Northcoast Research upgraded Mueller Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mueller Industries

In related news, Director Scott Jay Goldman sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.81, for a total transaction of $798,100.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 56,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,477,181.38. This trade represents a 15.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.80% of the company’s stock.

About Mueller Industries

Mueller Industries, Inc manufactures and sells copper, brass, aluminum, and plastic products in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, the Middle East, China, and Mexico. It operates through three segments: Piping Systems, Industrial Metals, and Climate. The Piping Systems segment offers copper tubes, fittings, line sets, and pipe nipples.