Mueller Water Products $MWA Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group cut its stake in Mueller Water Products by 13.6% in the first quarter, selling 442,587 shares and leaving it with about 2.82 million shares valued at roughly $77.5 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high at 91.68%, and several other hedge funds and asset managers recently added to or established positions in the company.
• Wall Street sentiment is mixed: the stock has an average Hold rating with a $30 target price, while recent reports ranged from Underweight to Buy.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 13.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,820,097 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 442,587 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.80% of Mueller Water Products worth $77,524,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MWA. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the fourth quarter worth about $75,400,000. Amundi increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 112.2% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 2,267,340 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $58,099,000 after buying an additional 1,198,801 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in Mueller Water Products by 344.1% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 945,613 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $22,733,000 after buying an additional 732,669 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $15,547,000. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter valued at $15,192,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MWA. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mueller Water Products from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays started coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an "underweight" rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.00.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MWA opened at $25.89 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $25.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.96. Mueller Water Products has a 1 year low of $22.74 and a 1 year high of $31.00. The company has a market capitalization of $4.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a current ratio of 4.57.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 22.11%. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio is presently 21.37%.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Brian C. Healy purchased 1,183 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.33 per share, for a total transaction of $29,965.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 24,946 shares of the company's stock, valued at $631,882.18. This trade represents a 4.98% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

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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