Swedbank AB Raises Stock Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,544 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 671 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,866,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Badger Meter by 86.0% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 8,566 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,385,000 after purchasing an additional 3,961 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Badger Meter by 1.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 62,769 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $10,157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102 shares during the last quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the first quarter valued at $327,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Badger Meter by 1.2% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 40,041 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $6,478,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Badger Meter by 228.2% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,590 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,390,000 after purchasing an additional 5,973 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

BMI stock opened at $216.46 on Thursday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.50 and a 1 year high of $230.76. The firm has a market cap of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $215.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $202.41.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.03). Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.80% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.08 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. Badger Meter’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BMI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com lowered Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Maxim Group upped their price target on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Badger Meter from $189.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $214.75.

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.