Mueller Industries, Inc. $MLI Stock: Perpetual Ltd Boosts Position

Key Points

• Perpetual Ltd nearly doubled its Mueller Industries stake in the third quarter, adding 262,776 shares to own 532,891 shares worth approximately $32.3 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 94.5% of the company.
• Mueller Industries reported quarterly EPS of $1.13, exceeding the $1.09 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 25.5% year over year to $1.43 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.175, equivalent to a 1.2% yield.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with a $75 price target, compared with shares trading at $60.84. However, insiders sold 275,444 shares worth about $18.9 million over the past three months.

Perpetual Ltd raised its holdings in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI - Free Report) by 97.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 532,891 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 262,776 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd owned about 0.24% of Mueller Industries worth $32,299,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MLI. Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its stake in shares of Mueller Industries by 169.1% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 35,950 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,419,000 after buying an additional 22,590 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Mueller Industries by 106.6% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 436,778 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $53,693,000 after acquiring an additional 225,366 shares in the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Mueller Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,658,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC boosted its stake in Mueller Industries by 60.3% during the 2nd quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 90,342 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $11,106,000 after acquiring an additional 33,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in Mueller Industries during the 2nd quarter valued at $20,177,000. 94.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mueller Industries Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of MLI opened at $60.84 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $13.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $63.01 and a 200-day moving average of $63.37. Mueller Industries, Inc. has a 52 week low of $48.44 and a 52 week high of $71.12.

Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.04. Mueller Industries had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 25.68%. The firm had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 25.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Mueller Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th were given a $0.1750 dividend. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Mueller Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on MLI. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Mueller Industries in a report on Friday, July 17th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Mueller Industries from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mueller Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating. According to data from MarketBeat, Mueller Industries presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.00.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Industries

In other news, Director Scott Goldman sold 2,000 shares of Mueller Industries stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.08, for a total value of $128,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 79,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,109,354.72. The trade was a 2.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Hansen sold 2,444 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.72, for a total transaction of $165,507.68. Following the sale, the director owned 181,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,279,532.16. This trade represents a 1.33% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 275,444 shares of company stock worth $18,885,398. 2.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Mueller Industries Profile

Mueller Industries, Inc manufactures and distributes products made from copper, brass, aluminum, steel and plastic. Its product portfolio includes copper and plastic pipe, fittings, valves, plumbing components, refrigeration and air-conditioning tubing, heat-transfer products, and other fabricated metal products.

The company serves residential, commercial, industrial and infrastructure markets. Its products are used in plumbing, heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, refrigeration, fire protection, water distribution, and various industrial applications.

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