Mueller Water Products $MWA Shares Bought by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has increased its stake in MUELLER WATER PRODUCTS by 16.8%, owning nearly 12.64% of the company, valued at approximately $503 million.
• MUELLER WATER PRODUCTS was upgraded from a "hold" to a "buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating a positive outlook for the stock.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.067 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 1.0%.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Free Report) by 16.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,795,482 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 2,840,895 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 12.64% of Mueller Water Products worth $503,201,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,174,938 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $93,936,000 after acquiring an additional 596,956 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew 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 purchasing an additional 636,331 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. grew 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 purchasing an additional 220,025 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in Mueller Water Products by 95.4% during the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 3,212,850 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $81,671,000 after buying an additional 1,568,247 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 49.4% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,688,962 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $60,502,000 after buying an additional 888,591 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Brian C. Healy purchased 1,110 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 7th. The stock was purchased 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 of the company's stock, valued at $389,160.20. This trade represents a 7.59% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 0.4%

Mueller Water Products stock traded down $0.10 during trading on Monday, reaching $26.14. The stock had a trading volume of 204,832 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,815,884. The company has a quick ratio of 2.56, a current ratio of 3.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Mueller Water Products has a 52-week low of $19.23 and a 52-week high of $28.58. The stock has a market cap of $4.09 billion, a PE ratio of 27.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.18. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $24.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.24.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $380.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $366.82 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 10.67%. Mueller Water Products's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 12th will be given a dividend of $0.067 per share. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 12th. Mueller Water Products's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.66%.

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 research note on Saturday, July 12th.

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.