GAMMA Investing LLC Buys 166,255 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 21,179.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 167,040 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after buying an additional 166,255 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC owned 0.57% of Badger Meter worth $31,779,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,406,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Badger Meter by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 20,140 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $4,272,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Cim LLC boosted its position in Badger Meter by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Cim LLC now owns 9,747 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,068,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth $19,270,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Price Performance

NYSE BMI traded down $1.75 on Friday, hitting $246.42. 215,571 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 210,515. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $162.17 and a twelve month high of $256.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.85. The company's 50 day moving average price is $218.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $214.87.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.22. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. The company had revenue of $222.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.39 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.99 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. Badger Meter's payout ratio is 29.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on BMI shares. Argus set a $240.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $209.00 to $196.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $229.80.

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.