82,519 Shares of Mueller Water Products $MWA Bought by Diversified Management Inc.

Key Points

• Diversified Management Inc. acquired 82,519 Mueller Water Products shares worth approximately $1.75 million, while institutional investors collectively own 91.68% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed, with two Buy, one Hold and two Sell ratings; the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $28.40, above the reported $21.56 share price.
• Mueller Water Products exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.50 EPS versus $0.39 expected and $395.9 million in revenue, up 4.1% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.07, representing a 1.3% annualized yield.

Diversified Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 82,519 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,753,000. Diversified Management Inc. owned about 0.05% of Mueller Water Products as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 34.0% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,036,679 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $165,948,000 after buying an additional 1,530,193 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 58.6% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,934,813 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $53,217,000 after acquiring an additional 714,913 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Mueller Water Products during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,496,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 30.0% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 888,975 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $24,438,000 after acquiring an additional 205,269 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 354.9% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 588,830 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $16,187,000 after acquiring an additional 459,393 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Christine Ortiz sold 12,048 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.23, for a total transaction of $291,923.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 30,824 shares in the company, valued at approximately $746,865.52. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.39, for a total value of $1,055,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 42,556 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,123,052.84. This trade represents a 48.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 52,598 shares of company stock valued at $1,360,685. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MWA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays started coverage on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $25.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Mueller Water Products from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Mueller Water Products from a "sector perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $21.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Mueller Water Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.40.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MWA opened at $21.56 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.08, a current ratio of 4.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $23.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.49. Mueller Water Products has a 52-week low of $20.90 and a 52-week high of $31.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.01.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.11. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 23.55% and a net margin of 15.02%.The business had revenue of $395.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $391.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.34 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio is 19.86%.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc develops and manufactures products used to build, maintain and monitor water transmission and distribution systems. Its offerings help utilities and other infrastructure operators control water flow, connect and repair pipelines, manage pressure and identify leaks.

The company's product portfolio includes water valves, fire hydrants, pipe fittings and repair products, metering and monitoring systems, leak-detection technologies, and related flow-control equipment.

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