Horizon Investment Services LLC Makes New $791,000 Investment in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Horizon Investment Services LLC bought a new position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 35,176 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $791,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Mueller Water Products by 361.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 266,155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,775,000 after purchasing an additional 208,502 shares during the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 390,199 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $8,467,000 after acquiring an additional 64,399 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Mueller Water Products by 369.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 98,457 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 77,467 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 697,618 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $15,696,000 after acquiring an additional 50,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 28.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 347,199 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $7,534,000 after purchasing an additional 77,772 shares during the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Mueller Water Products stock traded up $0.43 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $26.13. The company had a trading volume of 390,775 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,558,830. The company has a current ratio of 3.83, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.39. The company's fifty day moving average is $25.76 and its 200-day moving average is $24.00. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 12-month low of $14.81 and a 12-month high of $28.58.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.06. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.18% and a net margin of 10.05%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.13 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.23%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MWA shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Five 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 company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total value of $457,552.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 126,689 shares in the company, valued at $3,391,464.53. This trade represents a 11.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 11,132 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.73, for a total value of $275,294.36. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $182,408.48. The trade was a 60.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.