Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $236.60.

BMI has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Argus set a $240.00 price objective on Badger Meter in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Badger Meter from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set a "market perform" rating for the company.

Badger Meter Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of BMI stock traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $243.12. The stock had a trading volume of 181,842 shares, compared to its average volume of 211,725. Badger Meter has a 12-month low of $162.17 and a 12-month high of $256.08. The company has a market cap of $7.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $227.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $216.22.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $222.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $220.39 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Badger Meter will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. Badger Meter's payout ratio is 29.96%.

Institutional Trading of Badger Meter

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Modern Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at about $327,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at about $590,000. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 18.4% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 34,091 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $6,486,000 after purchasing an additional 5,308 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 1,451.3% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 134,715 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $25,630,000 after purchasing an additional 126,031 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 305,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $58,034,000 after purchasing an additional 8,345 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Badger Meter Company 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.