Dundas Partners LLP Acquires 200 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Dundas Partners LLP lifted its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 14.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,589 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 200 shares during the quarter. Dundas Partners LLP’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $337,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $20,586,000. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 68,137 shares during the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter valued at $10,462,000. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 348.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,090 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $12,034,000 after purchasing an additional 42,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth $7,494,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on BMI. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group boosted their price objective 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 two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $218.75.

Badger Meter Price Performance

NYSE:BMI opened at $212.68 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $213.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $213.96. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $150.87 and a fifty-two week high of $239.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.26 billion, a PE ratio of 50.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 32.15%.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In related news, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $240,571.78. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,064,640.24. This represents a 18.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total value of $31,395.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter 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.