Amundi Reduces Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Amundi decreased its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 192,807 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 2,616 shares during the period. Amundi owned about 0.65% of Badger Meter worth $35,657,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 25.9% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 630,891 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $120,027,000 after acquiring an additional 129,945 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 398,588 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $75,831,000 after buying an additional 35,424 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter valued at $65,448,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 291,637 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $55,484,000 after buying an additional 4,807 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 257,863 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $49,060,000 after buying an additional 1,646 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Trading Down 2.0%

NYSE:BMI traded down $3.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $177.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 85,318 shares, compared to its average volume of 280,123. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12-month low of $162.17 and a 12-month high of $256.08. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $199.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $212.72. The stock has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.71, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.87.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.02). Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 15.53%.The business had revenue of $238.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $235.38 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.12 EPS. Badger Meter's quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Investors of record on Friday, August 22nd were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. This is a positive change from Badger Meter's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Badger Meter's payout ratio is 34.86%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on BMI. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Tuesday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.00.

About Badger Meter

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.