Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Issues Earnings Results

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.17, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $196.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.25 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 13.16% and a return on equity of 19.07%. Badger Meter’s revenue was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.66 EPS.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE BMI traded up $25.48 on Thursday, hitting $178.48. The stock had a trading volume of 696,323 shares, compared to its average volume of 179,892. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $156.77 and a 200-day moving average of $150.37. The company has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.86. Badger Meter has a 52-week low of $119.02 and a 52-week high of $179.51.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 23rd were issued a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 22nd. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.39%.

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, VP Fred J. Begale sold 1,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.92, for a total value of $195,992.76. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $355,328.52. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Badger Meter news, VP Fred J. Begale sold 1,203 shares of Badger Meter stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.92, for a total transaction of $195,992.76. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $355,328.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 194 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.55, for a total value of $30,952.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 13,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,181,367.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,813 shares of company stock valued at $448,167. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $91,000. State of Wyoming boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 168.4% in the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 714 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Middle East FZE purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth approximately $112,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at $115,000. Finally, Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at $133,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on BMI shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com lowered Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 3rd. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $147.50.

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.