Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $229.80.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on BMI. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $209.00 to $196.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Maxim Group boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Argus set a $240.00 target price on Badger Meter in a report on Thursday.

Badger Meter Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE BMI traded down $1.13 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $216.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 152,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 203,333. Badger Meter has a 12-month low of $162.17 and a 12-month high of $239.11. The firm has a market cap of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.84. The business's 50 day moving average is $197.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $209.68.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.22. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. The business had revenue of $222.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.39 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Badger Meter will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.63%. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 1,165 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $247,131.45. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 52,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,162,280.60. This represents a 2.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 2,416 shares of Badger Meter stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.33, for a total transaction of $508,157.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,986,475.67. The trade was a 14.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Barclays PLC raised 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 buying an additional 42,806 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 9.0% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,750 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,911,000 after acquiring an additional 726 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 4.6% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 2,211 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,317 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $4,126,000 after buying an additional 2,276 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co of the South acquired a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth $394,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.