Freedom Investment Management Inc. Purchases New Position in Mueller Water Products $MWA

Key Points

• Freedom Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products, purchasing 19,823 shares valued at approximately $504,000 in the first quarter.
• Mueller Water Products reported a quarterly EPS of $0.34, missing estimates by $0.01, while its revenue was up 6.6% year-over-year at $380.30 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.067 per share, equating to an annual yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 27.66%.

Freedom Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 19,823 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $502,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 354.3% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 318,939 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,107,000 after acquiring an additional 248,733 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 45.6% in the 1st quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 52,336 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,330,000 after acquiring an additional 16,400 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $287,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $217,000. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of MWA stock opened at $27.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a current ratio of 3.86. The company has a market capitalization of $4.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.18. The company's 50 day moving average price is $25.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.30. Mueller Water Products has a 52 week low of $19.23 and a 52 week high of $28.58.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $380.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $366.82 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 10.67%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. Mueller Water Products has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, analysts expect that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th were issued a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 12th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.66%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Thomas J. Hansen sold 24,005 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.15, for a total value of $627,730.75. Following the sale, the director directly owned 86,163 shares in the company, valued at $2,253,162.45. This trade represents a 21.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO Suzanne G. Smith sold 8,621 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.37, for a total transaction of $227,335.77. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 761 shares in the company, valued at $20,067.57. This trade represents a 91.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $28.33.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.

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