Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI Shares Sold by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Key Points

• Vontobel Holding Ltd. has reduced its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. by 55.8%, selling 3,824 shares, and now holds 3,024 shares valued at $741,000.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Badger Meter, with three recommending a Buy and five giving it a Hold, while the current average price target is $237.00.
• Badger Meter recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.40, representing an annualized yield of 0.9% and a payout ratio of 34.86%.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. reduced its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 55.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,024 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 3,824 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $741,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Badger Meter by 100.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its position in Badger Meter by 83.0% during the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 194 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth $37,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BMI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Badger Meter in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note 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 for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $237.00.

Badger Meter Trading Up 2.6%

BMI stock opened at $177.47 on Tuesday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $162.17 and a twelve month high of $256.08. The company has a market capitalization of $5.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.66, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.90. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $181.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $209.07.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.19 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $238.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $235.38 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 15.53%.Badger Meter's revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

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

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.

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