Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Shares Purchased by Alps Advisors Inc.

Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,870 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,090 shares during the quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. owned 0.15% of Badger Meter worth $8,156,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter valued at $94,547,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised 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 valued at $49,917,000 after purchasing an additional 231,398 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 21,179.0% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167,040 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $31,779,000 after purchasing an additional 166,255 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 184.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth about $20,586,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Badger Meter from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Argus set a $240.00 price objective on Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $236.60.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMI traded up $0.55 during trading on Monday, hitting $239.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 156,923 shares, compared to its average volume of 242,256. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $162.17 and a fifty-two week high of $256.08. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $242.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $218.68. The company has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a PE ratio of 52.77, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.83.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.22. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 22.35% and a net margin of 15.74%. The business had revenue of $222.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $220.39 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.96%.

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.