MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Sells 1,417 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. has reduced its ownership in Badger Meter, Inc. by 0.6%, now holding 250,383 shares worth approximately $47.64 million.
• In the first quarter, several institutional investors increased their stakes, with Invesco Ltd. boosting its holdings by 25.9%, now owning 630,891 shares valued at $120 million.
• Badger Meter recently reported a quarterly earnings miss, with EPS at $1.17, falling short of analyst expectations of $1.19, despite a 9.9% year-over-year revenue growth.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. decreased its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 250,383 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 1,417 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. owned approximately 0.85% of Badger Meter worth $47,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in BMI. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at $65,448,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at $44,715,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 21,179.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167,040 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $31,779,000 after purchasing an additional 166,255 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 129,945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in Badger Meter by 1,451.3% during the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 134,715 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $25,630,000 after buying an additional 126,031 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Trading Down 2.0%

NYSE BMI traded down $3.64 during trading on Friday, hitting $177.65. The company had a trading volume of 93,716 shares, compared to its average volume of 280,265. Badger Meter, Inc. has a one year low of $162.17 and a one year high of $256.08. The company has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.87. The company's fifty day moving average is $199.94 and its 200-day moving average is $212.72.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.19 by ($0.02). Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 15.53%.The company had revenue of $238.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $235.38 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on BMI. Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $237.00.

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.