Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 274,007 Shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA)

Victory Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 42.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 375,824 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 274,007 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.24% of Mueller Water Products worth $9,553,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,954,587 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $381,478,000 after acquiring an additional 378,356 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 16.7% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,174,938 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $93,936,000 after acquiring an additional 596,956 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 79.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,014,131 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $90,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,780,366 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 21.1% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,651,340 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $92,817,000 after buying an additional 636,331 shares during the period. Finally, Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,248,990 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $73,102,000 after buying an additional 220,025 shares during the period. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of MWA traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $25.14. 52,538 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,859,650. The company has a market cap of $3.94 billion, a PE ratio of 27.60, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.18. The firm's 50 day moving average is $24.46 and its 200-day moving average is $24.97. Mueller Water Products has a 52 week low of $18.55 and a 52 week high of $28.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 3.79.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 10.48%. The firm had revenue of $364.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $352.30 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Investors of record on Monday, May 12th were given a dividend of $0.067 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.67%.

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In related news, Director Brian Slobodow sold 7,376 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.57, for a total transaction of $181,228.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Brian C. Healy purchased 1,110 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.74 per share, with a total value of $27,461.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 15,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $389,160.20. This represents a 7.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Mueller Water Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $26.25.

Mueller Water Products Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.