Montanaro Asset Management Ltd Lowers Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Montanaro Asset Management Ltd decreased its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 21.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 53,450 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 14,600 shares during the quarter. Badger Meter makes up 2.3% of Montanaro Asset Management Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Montanaro Asset Management Ltd owned approximately 0.18% of Badger Meter worth $11,338,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 350,378 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $74,322,000 after acquiring an additional 12,180 shares in the last quarter. Burney Co. bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $385,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 68.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 33,395 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $7,083,000 after purchasing an additional 13,526 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 29.0% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 11,971 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,615,000 after purchasing an additional 2,692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortress Financial Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth approximately $369,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Insider Activity

In other Badger Meter news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $31,395.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,051 shares in the company, valued at $2,980,638.63. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $240,571.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,076 shares in the company, valued at $1,064,640.24. This trade represents a 18.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 in the last ninety days. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BMI shares. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Maxim Group upped their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $225.20.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of BMI stock traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $190.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 47,293 shares, compared to its average volume of 230,530. The stock has a market cap of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.04, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52-week low of $151.18 and a 52-week high of $239.11. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $208.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.72.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. Equities research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal 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 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 yield of 0.71%. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.15%.

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.