Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Buys Shares of 10,327 Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 10,327 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 2,962.3% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,015,009 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $67,838,000 after acquiring an additional 2,916,552 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 79.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,014,131 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $90,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780,366 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter valued at $20,996,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 49.4% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,688,962 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $60,502,000 after acquiring an additional 888,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 514.2% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 970,055 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $21,826,000 after acquiring an additional 812,127 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In related news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,085 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.32 per share, for a total transaction of $27,472.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,620 shares in the company, valued at $370,178.40. This represents a 8.02% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total value of $457,552.84. Following the transaction, the director now owns 126,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,464.53. The trade was a 11.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 35,600 shares of company stock valued at $914,076 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on MWA. StockNews.com downgraded Mueller Water Products from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.25.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Mueller Water Products stock traded up $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $25.64. 1,345,484 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,577,324. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 3.83. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.09 and a fifty-two week high of $28.58. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a PE ratio of 29.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.24.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $364.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $352.30 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. Mueller Water Products's quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

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

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

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.