EMC Capital Management Increases Stake in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI)

EMC Capital Management increased its position in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI - Free Report) by 450.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,469 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 7,749 shares during the period. Mueller Industries accounts for about 0.4% of EMC Capital Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. EMC Capital Management's holdings in Mueller Industries were worth $751,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 552 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Mueller Industries in the third quarter worth $41,000. City State Bank purchased a new stake in Mueller Industries during the fourth quarter valued at $58,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Industries in the 3rd quarter worth $64,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $69,000. 94.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Northcoast Research raised shares of Mueller Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th.

Mueller Industries Price Performance

Shares of Mueller Industries stock traded down $0.66 on Monday, reaching $78.09. The company had a trading volume of 325,053 shares, compared to its average volume of 687,473. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $80.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.54. Mueller Industries, Inc. has a 1 year low of $47.46 and a 1 year high of $96.81. The firm has a market cap of $8.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.17 and a beta of 0.98.

Mueller Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. Mueller Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.53%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Charles P. Herzog, Jr. sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.04, for a total transaction of $1,380,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 17,733 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,632,145.32. This represents a 45.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.80% of the company's stock.

Mueller Industries Company Profile

Mueller Industries, Inc manufactures and sells copper, brass, aluminum, and plastic products in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, the Middle East, China, and Mexico. It operates through three segments: Piping Systems, Industrial Metals, and Climate. The Piping Systems segment offers copper tubes, fittings, line sets, and pipe nipples.