Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Stock Dropped to "Neutral" by Northcoast Research

Key Points

• Northcoast Research downgraded Badger Meter from “buy” to “neutral,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “hold,” with five buys, six holds and one sell.
• Analysts’ consensus price target is $165.88; recent targets include $187 from RBC and $175 from Robert W. Baird.
• Badger Meter slightly exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.24 EPS versus $1.23 expected, though revenue of $230.3 million fell short of the $240.35 million consensus estimate.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Northcoast Research from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on BMI. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $187.00 price objective (up from $162.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Friday. Zacks Research upgraded Badger Meter from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen lowered Badger Meter from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, October 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $172.00 to $170.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $165.88.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE:BMI opened at $156.09 on Tuesday. Badger Meter has a 52 week low of $112.09 and a 52 week high of $192.28. The firm's fifty day moving average is $131.11 and its 200-day moving average is $139.57. The firm has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.93, a P/E/G ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.64.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.01. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 14.36%. The business had revenue of $230.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $240.35 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Badger Meter will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Edward Callahan purchased 751 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $135.25 per share, with a total value of $101,572.75. Following the acquisition, the vice president directly owned 1,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $261,979.25. This represents a 63.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the first quarter worth about $1,447,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the 2nd quarter valued at about $68,344,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $725,926,000. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 66.7% during the second quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 20,000 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,773,000 after acquiring an additional 8,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in Badger Meter in the second quarter worth $2,298,000. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Badger Meter

Badger Meter, Inc is a water technology company that develops and manufactures flow measurement, control and communications solutions. Its products are used to measure and manage water across municipal, commercial and industrial applications, helping customers improve operational efficiency, monitor usage and support water conservation.

The company's offerings include mechanical, ultrasonic and electromagnetic flow meters; valves and related flow-control equipment; and smart water technologies.

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