Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Decreases Stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. reduced its stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 75.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 202,111 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 611,656 shares during the quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned approximately 0.13% of Mueller Water Products worth $4,547,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 361.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 266,155 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,775,000 after purchasing an additional 208,502 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 697,618 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $15,696,000 after purchasing an additional 50,119 shares during the last quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 57.9% during the 4th quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 31,931 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $718,000 after purchasing an additional 11,711 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 199,716 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,494,000 after purchasing an additional 22,045 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter valued at $1,573,000. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of MWA stock traded up $0.27 on Friday, hitting $25.47. 240,422 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,568,225. The company has a current ratio of 3.83, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a PE ratio of 29.62, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.24. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a one year low of $17.09 and a one year high of $28.58. The firm's 50 day moving average is $25.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.72.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.18% and a net margin of 10.05%. The business had revenue of $364.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $352.30 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MWA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com downgraded Mueller Water Products from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $26.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total transaction of $457,552.84. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 126,689 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,391,464.53. This trade represents a 11.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 7,376 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.57, for a total value of $181,228.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 35,600 shares of company stock worth $914,076 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Mueller Water Products

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.