Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Price Target Lowered to $109.00 at Barclays

Key Points

• Barclays lowered its price target on Badger Meter from $110 to $109 and kept an underweight rating, implying about 24% downside from the prior close.
• Other analysts have also turned more cautious on the stock, with recent rating cuts from Wall Street Zen, Maxim Group, and Weiss Ratings. Overall, Badger Meter now has a Hold consensus rating and a consensus price target of $155.71.
• The stock opened at $144.10, while the company reported last quarter’s EPS at $1.14 on revenue of $220.71 million. Insider buying and heavy institutional ownership remain notable, with 89.01% of shares held by institutions.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by equities research analysts at Barclays from $110.00 to $109.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "underweight" rating on the scientific and technical instruments company's stock. Barclays's price objective would suggest a potential downside of 24.36% from the stock's previous close.

BMI has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen cut Badger Meter from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. Maxim Group lowered Badger Meter from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $140.00 price objective on Badger Meter in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered Badger Meter from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Badger Meter from $173.00 to $145.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $155.71.

Badger Meter Price Performance

NYSE BMI opened at $144.10 on Monday. Badger Meter has a 12 month low of $112.09 and a 12 month high of $249.56. The company has a 50-day moving average of $130.24 and a 200-day moving average of $146.49. The company has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.64.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $220.71 million for the quarter. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.76% and a net margin of 14.56%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Badger Meter will post 4.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst acquired 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $117.53 per share, for a total transaction of $258,566.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 51,676 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,073,480.28. This trade represents a 4.45% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Richard Htwe bought 1,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $116.13 per share, for a total transaction of $197,421.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president directly owned 7,603 shares in the company, valued at approximately $882,936.39. This trade represents a 28.80% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 6,628 shares of company stock valued at $777,128. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,819,000. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 89.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 712,650 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $124,293,000 after purchasing an additional 335,953 shares during the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the third quarter worth $45,435,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 754,402 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $131,592,000 after purchasing an additional 212,448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 99.5% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 401,668 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $72,203,000 after purchasing an additional 200,330 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Badger Meter

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company's core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company's product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.

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