Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Shares Purchased by Congress Wealth Management LLC DE

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 29.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 60,903 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,982 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE owned about 0.21% of Badger Meter worth $12,919,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,586,000. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its position in Badger Meter by 23.1% during the fourth 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 buying an additional 68,137 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd acquired a new stake in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at $10,462,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,841,879 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $814,939,000 after buying an additional 44,839 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 42,806 shares during the period. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 52,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,162,280.60. This trade represents a 2.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 2,416 shares of the 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,199 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,986,475.67. The trade was a 14.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMI traded down $3.34 during trading on Friday, reaching $189.86. The stock had a trading volume of 209,717 shares, compared to its average volume of 194,477. The stock has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a PE ratio of 44.88, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1-year low of $151.18 and a 1-year high of $239.11. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $208.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.62.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. Sell-side analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter's payout ratio is currently 32.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BMI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Maxim Group upped their target price on Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $225.20.

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.