Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 12,021 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Geode Capital Management LLC cut its position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 1.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 778,655 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 12,021 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.65% of Badger Meter worth $170,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 1,016.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 201 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its stake in Badger Meter by 40.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 575 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Badger Meter by 61.3% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 805 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $176,000 after buying an additional 306 shares in the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 3rd quarter worth about $204,000. Finally, Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter valued at about $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BMI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Maxim Group increased their price target on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Badger Meter from $203.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $216.00.

Badger Meter Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE BMI traded up $4.06 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $230.37. The company had a trading volume of 138,010 shares, compared to its average volume of 181,631. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $217.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $204.91. The company has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a PE ratio of 57.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.79. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.50 and a twelve month high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.03). Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.80% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.08 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.19 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.75%.

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.