Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Shares Purchased by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 291.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 55,565 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 41,381 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System's holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $1,412,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 171.8% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,761 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,113 shares in the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 73.1% during the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter worth approximately $63,000. Finally, Gen Wealth Partners Inc acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

MWA stock traded down $0.15 on Friday, hitting $25.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 616,889 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,584,855. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $24.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.79. Mueller Water Products has a 1 year low of $18.55 and a 1 year high of $28.58. The stock has a market cap of $3.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 3.79, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 10.48% and a return on equity of 21.31%. 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 firm earned $0.30 EPS. Mueller Water Products's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,110 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $24.74 per share, for a total transaction of $27,461.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 15,730 shares in the company, valued at $389,160.20. This represents a 7.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 7,376 shares of the company'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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $26.25.

About Mueller Water Products

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.