Norwood Investment Partners LP Buys Shares of 23,000 Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Key Points

• Norwood Investment Partners initiated a position of 23,000 Badger Meter shares in the second quarter, making BMI approximately 4.7% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 89.01% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: five analysts rate the stock a Buy, five a Hold, and one a Sell. The consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $164.
• Badger Meter slightly beat quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $1.02 versus $1.01, although revenue fell 6.6% year over year. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.44, implying a 1.3% annual yield.

Norwood Investment Partners LP bought a new position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 23,000 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock, valued at approximately $3,412,740,000. Badger Meter comprises about 4.7% of Norwood Investment Partners LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Norwood Investment Partners LP owned about 0.08% of Badger Meter at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $725,926,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,819,000. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 89.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 712,650 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $124,293,000 after acquiring an additional 335,953 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in Badger Meter by 39.2% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 754,402 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $131,592,000 after acquiring an additional 212,448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its position in Badger Meter by 99.5% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 401,668 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $72,203,000 after acquiring an additional 200,330 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Robert W. Baird set a $167.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $170.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Badger Meter from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $112.00 price target (up from $109.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $164.00.

Badger Meter Trading Up 3.2%

NYSE BMI opened at $132.19 on Friday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $112.09 and a 1 year high of $204.00. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $137.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $139.15. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.65.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $220.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.59 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.27% and a return on equity of 18.03%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th will be given a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from Badger Meter's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 28th. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.12%.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, VP Edward F. Callahan acquired 751 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $101,572.75. Following the completion of the purchase, the vice president owned 1,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $261,979.25. This trade represents a 63.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Company Profile

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company's core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company's product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.

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