Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Acquires 13,955 Shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA)

Key Points

• Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 19.6%, purchasing an additional 13,955 shares, bringing their total to 85,296 shares valued at $2.17 million.
• Insider transactions included Director Brian C. Healy purchasing 1,110 shares at an average price of $24.74, while another director sold 7,376 shares for $24.57 each.
• Mueller Water Products disclosed a quarterly dividend of $0.067, yielding 1.09%, and reported a recent earnings per share (EPS) of $0.34, surpassing analysts' expectations.

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 19.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,296 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,955 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ owned 0.05% of Mueller Water Products worth $2,168,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Byrne Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 73.1% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,726 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 660 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 54,437 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,384,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,702 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $556,000 after purchasing an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 16,255 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $366,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mueller Water Products

In related news, Director Brian Slobodow sold 7,376 shares of the 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian C. Healy purchased 1,110 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $24.74 per share, for a total transaction of $27,461.40. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 15,730 shares in the company, valued at $389,160.20. This trade represents a 7.59% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Shares of MWA traded down $0.76 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $24.00. 340,780 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,843,686. The company has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a PE ratio of 26.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.18. Mueller Water Products has a 52-week low of $18.55 and a 52-week high of $28.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $24.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.99. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $364.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $352.30 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.31% and a net margin of 10.48%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.067 per share. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 12th. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.67%.

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.