Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.22 EPS

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.22, RTT News reports. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of BMI stock opened at $184.54 on Thursday. Badger Meter has a 52-week low of $152.52 and a 52-week high of $239.11. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $199.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.43 billion, a PE ratio of 43.63, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.84.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.15%.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 1,165 shares of Badger Meter stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total value of $247,131.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 52,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,162,280.60. This trade represents a 2.17 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total value of $31,395.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

An institutional investor recently bought a new position in Badger Meter stock. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,068 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $227,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on BMI shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Badger Meter from $209.00 to $196.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Maxim Group lifted their target price 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $222.60.

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.

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