Ethic Inc. Makes New $407,000 Investment in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI)

Ethic Inc. purchased a new stake in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 5,123 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $407,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Industries in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $201,376,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Mueller Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $117,351,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Mueller Industries by 50.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,788,607 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $221,304,000 after acquiring an additional 933,498 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Mueller Industries by 79.2% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,911,689 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $151,712,000 after purchasing an additional 845,031 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its stake in Mueller Industries by 169.1% during the fourth quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,058,830 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $84,029,000 after acquiring an additional 665,413 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.50% of the company's stock.

Mueller Industries Stock Performance

Shares of Mueller Industries stock traded down $1.20 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $76.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 48,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 930,675. The stock has a market cap of $8.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 1.03. Mueller Industries, Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.53 and a twelve month high of $96.81. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $75.21 and a 200-day moving average of $79.62.

Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The industrial products company reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.08. Mueller Industries had a net margin of 16.05% and a return on equity of 22.97%. The company had revenue of $1 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1 billion.

Mueller Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Mueller Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.21%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Scott Jay Goldman sold 16,483 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.46, for a total transaction of $1,210,841.18. Following the sale, the director now owns 39,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,910,117.90. This represents a 29.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John B. Hansen sold 3,130 shares of Mueller Industries stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total transaction of $244,359.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 93,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,331,865.98. This trade represents a 3.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,613 shares of company stock valued at $2,198,600. 2.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Mueller Industries

Mueller Industries, Inc manufactures and sells copper, brass, aluminum, and plastic products in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, the Middle East, China, and Mexico. It operates through three segments: Piping Systems, Industrial Metals, and Climate. The Piping Systems segment offers copper tubes, fittings, line sets, and pipe nipples.