Mueller Water Products $MWA Shares Purchased by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Mueller Water Products stake by 30% in the first quarter, purchasing 205,269 shares and bringing its holdings to 888,975 shares, or 0.57% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 91.68% of MWA.
• Mueller Water Products reported quarterly EPS of $0.50, exceeding estimates of $0.39, while revenue rose 4.1% year over year to $395.9 million. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.07, equal to a 1.1% annual yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with an overall “Hold” consensus and a $30.20 average price target versus the stock’s $25.20 opening price. A director bought shares under a 10b5-1 plan, while CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares under a similar plan.

Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 30.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 888,975 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 205,269 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.57% of Mueller Water Products worth $24,438,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MWA. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 25.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 153,043 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,890,000 after acquiring an additional 30,862 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 87.2% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 122,472 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,113,000 after purchasing an additional 57,053 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at $205,000. United Services Automobile Association purchased a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at $212,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in Mueller Water Products by 10.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 572,686 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $14,558,000 after buying an additional 56,404 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mueller Water Products

In other news, Director Brian C. Healy bought 1,183 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.33 per share, for a total transaction of $29,965.39. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 24,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $631,882.18. The trade was a 4.98% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Paul Mcandrew sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.39, for a total value of $1,055,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 42,556 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,123,052.84. This trade represents a 48.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MWA. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Mueller Water Products from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Mueller Water Products from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.20.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MWA opened at $25.20 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.03. Mueller Water Products has a 12 month low of $22.74 and a 12 month high of $31.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 4.64 and a quick ratio of 3.08. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.99.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.11. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 23.55% and a net margin of 15.02%.The business had revenue of $395.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $391.49 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.86%.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc is a leading provider of water infrastructure and flow control products and services designed to help water utilities and municipalities manage, control and measure their water distribution systems. The company's portfolio includes a comprehensive range of products such as fire hydrants, valves, pipe repair systems, fittings and couplings, along with advanced metering and monitoring solutions. By combining traditional mechanical components with digital technologies, Mueller Water Products addresses the critical need for reliable and sustainable water distribution across North America.

The company's operations are organized around two primary business segments.

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