MQS Management LLC Takes $466,000 Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,451 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $466,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of BMI. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 2,780 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Badger Meter by 0.6% during the first quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 8,739 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $1,663,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Cim LLC lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Cim LLC now owns 9,747 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,068,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,221 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $259,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Badger Meter by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 20,140 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $4,272,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BMI. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $200.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Argus set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. 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 stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $236.60.

Badger Meter Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $238.84 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $7.03 billion, a PE ratio of 52.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.83. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $242.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $218.68. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1-year low of $162.17 and a 1-year high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 net margin of 15.74% and a return on equity of 22.35%. The company had revenue of $222.21 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.39 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 23rd. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.96%.

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.

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