Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO Invests $1.41 Million in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO bought a new position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 7,390 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $1,406,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth approximately $94,547,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in Badger Meter by 5,897.0% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 235,322 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $49,917,000 after purchasing an additional 231,398 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Badger Meter by 184.6% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 256,217 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $54,350,000 after purchasing an additional 166,191 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth approximately $20,586,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Badger Meter by 111.1% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 182,382 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $38,687,000 after purchasing an additional 95,966 shares during the period. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Badger Meter

In other news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total value of $3,371,151.02. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 34,961 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,332,720.14. This represents a 31.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $240,571.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,076 shares in the company, valued at $1,064,640.24. This trade represents a 18.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE:BMI traded up $4.05 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $252.27. 188,502 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 208,607. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $213.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $213.85. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $162.17 and a fifty-two week high of $252.80. The firm has a market cap of $7.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.65, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 23rd. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on BMI. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price 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. Robert W. Baird cut 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. Maxim Group increased their price objective on Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Badger Meter from $209.00 to $196.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.80.

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.