Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Sells 3,048 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Key Points

• Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. reduced its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. by 28.7%, selling 3,048 shares and now holding 7,561 shares valued at approximately $1.44 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Westfield Capital Management and GAMMA Investing LLC, have significantly increased their holdings in Badger Meter during the same period.
• Badger Meter reported earnings of $1.17 per share, missing expectations, while also increasing its quarterly dividend from $0.34 to $0.40 per share, reflecting a 0.9% yield.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. reduced its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 28.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,561 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 3,048 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 100.0% during the 1st 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 stake in shares of Badger Meter by 83.0% during the 1st 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 position in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on BMI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday. They set an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.00.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:BMI traded down $3.47 on Friday, reaching $177.82. 315,285 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 289,675. The company has a fifty day moving average of $198.64 and a 200-day moving average of $212.51. 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 $5.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.74, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.87.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $235.38 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

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

Badger Meter 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.