Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. reduced its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. by 16.7% to 456,899 shares, valued at approximately $86.93 million, as per recent SEC filings.
• Badger Meter announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.34 to $0.40 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $1.60 and a yield of 0.9%.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a 9.9% increase in revenue year-over-year, totaling $238.1 million, although it missed the consensus EPS estimate by $0.02.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 16.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 456,899 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 91,411 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 1.55% of Badger Meter worth $86,925,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Badger Meter by 25.9% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 630,891 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $120,027,000 after purchasing an additional 129,945 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 35,424 shares during the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in Badger Meter during the 1st quarter valued at about $65,448,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 4,807 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in 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 purchasing an additional 1,646 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Badger Meter Trading Up 3.4%

NYSE BMI traded up $5.82 on Thursday, reaching $178.49. 628,846 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 344,897. Badger Meter, Inc. has a one year low of $162.17 and a one year high of $256.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.26 billion, a PE ratio of 38.89, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.87. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $193.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $211.64.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) 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 the consensus estimate of $235.38 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target 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. Robert W. Baird raised their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $237.00.

Badger Meter Company 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.