Sei Investments Co. Cuts Position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Sei Investments Co. lessened its position in shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 15.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 109,586 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 20,284 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co. owned about 0.07% of Mueller Water Products worth $2,466,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MWA. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 10.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,618,782 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $197,456,000 after purchasing an additional 791,569 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 0.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,931,662 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $85,317,000 after purchasing an additional 12,438 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 2.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,538,901 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $76,809,000 after purchasing an additional 73,069 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Mueller Water Products by 2,962.3% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,015,009 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $67,838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,916,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 55.1% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,056,632 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $46,274,000 after acquiring an additional 730,442 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total transaction of $457,552.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 126,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,391,464.53. This represents a 11.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 11,132 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.73, for a total transaction of $275,294.36. Following the transaction, the director now owns 7,376 shares in the company, 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. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped 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. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Mueller Water Products from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $25.80.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Shares of MWA traded up $2.05 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.87. 1,775,562 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,591,111. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.92, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 3.83, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a one year low of $14.81 and a one year high of $28.58. The business has a 50-day moving average of $25.82 and a 200 day moving average of $24.10.

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

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.23%.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

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.