Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI Shares Acquired by Select Equity Group L.P.

Select Equity Group L.P. raised its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI - Free Report) by 686.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 37,539 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after purchasing an additional 32,763 shares during the quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. owned 0.13% of Badger Meter worth $7,142,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BMI. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 83.0% during the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 194 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BMI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $230.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $237.00.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.9%

BMI stock traded down $3.47 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $177.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 315,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 289,675. The stock has a market cap of $5.24 billion, a PE ratio of 38.74, a P/E/G ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.87. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $162.17 and a fifty-two week high of $256.08. The company's 50 day moving average is $198.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $212.54.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $238.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $235.38 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The firm's revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This is a positive change from Badger Meter's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Badger Meter's payout ratio is currently 34.86%.

Badger Meter Profile

Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions worldwide. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities market. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline, including water, air, steam, and other liquids and gases to original equipment manufacturers as the primary flow measurement device within a product or system, as well as through manufacturers' representatives.