Jones Financial Companies Lllp Acquires 4,151 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Key Points

• Jones Financial Companies Lllp significantly increased its stake in Badger Meter, Inc., acquiring an additional 4,151 shares, resulting in a total holding of 6,372 shares valued at approximately $1,212,000.
• Badger Meter announced a dividend increase to $0.40 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $1.60 and a yield of 0.9%, with a payout ratio of 34.86%.
• Despite a revenue beat of 9.9% year-over-year, Badger Meter reported an earnings per share of $1.17, which fell short of analyst expectations of $1.19.

Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 186.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,372 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,151 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp's holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,212,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 100.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 83.0% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 194 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new position in Badger Meter in the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Badger Meter in the first quarter worth approximately $41,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of BMI opened at $177.82 on Friday. 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. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $198.64 and a 200 day moving average of $212.51. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12 month low of $162.17 and a 12 month high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm had revenue of $238.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $235.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.12 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a $0.40 dividend. 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%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 22nd. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.

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