Lazard Asset Management LLC Trims Stock Position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Lazard Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 47.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,195 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 59,347 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $1,488,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 361.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 266,155 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,775,000 after acquiring an additional 208,502 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 87.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,167 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $199,000 after purchasing an additional 4,275 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth about $1,573,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Mueller Water Products during the fourth quarter worth approximately $100,000. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 17,455 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MWA traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $24.58. The stock had a trading volume of 1,014,817 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,568,926. The company has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of 28.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.85. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 1 year low of $17.09 and a 1 year high of $28.58. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 3.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.18% and a net margin of 10.05%. The firm had revenue of $364.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $352.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th were paid a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 12th. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on MWA shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mueller Water Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $26.25.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,085 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.32 per share, for a total transaction of $27,472.20. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 14,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $370,178.40. The trade was a 8.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 7,376 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.57, for a total value of $181,228.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,600 shares of company stock valued at $914,076. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

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.