Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,841,879 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 44,839 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 13.06% of Badger Meter worth $814,939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 valued at $74,322,000 after acquiring an additional 12,180 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. purchased a new position in Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth approximately $385,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Badger Meter by 68.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its stake 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 period. Finally, Fortress Financial Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth approximately $369,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group increased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on Badger Meter in a report on Thursday, March 27th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $251.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $225.20.

Badger Meter Stock Down 5.9 %

Shares of NYSE:BMI traded down $11.61 on Thursday, hitting $184.16. The company had a trading volume of 32,727 shares, compared to its average volume of 229,406. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $207.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $213.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $151.18 and a 1 year high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 1,165 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total value of $247,131.45. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 52,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,162,280.60. This represents a 2.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $1,064,640.24. The trade was a 18.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

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.