Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Trading Up 4.7%

Shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) rose 4.7% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $16.06 and last traded at $16.06. Approximately 209,614 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 1,033,063 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.34.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MWA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Mueller Water Products from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Mueller Water Products from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Oppenheimer raised Mueller Water Products from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $19.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.50.

Mueller Water Products Trading Up 3.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 3.29 and a quick ratio of 1.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.78, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.35. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.19.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The industrial products company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $256.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $250.64 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 13.86% and a net margin of 6.35%. The company's revenue was down 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 0.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 9th were given a $0.064 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. Mueller Water Products's payout ratio is presently 52.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 5,961 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.95, for a total transaction of $83,155.95. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 128,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,787,525.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Mueller Water Products news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 37,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.15, for a total transaction of $560,550.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 41,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $623,892.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 5,961 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.95, for a total value of $83,155.95. Following the transaction, the director now owns 128,138 shares in the company, valued at $1,787,525.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 75,419 shares of company stock valued at $1,135,416. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Mueller Water Products

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Pingora Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 132.1% in the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,291 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,873 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 1,340.0% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 4,752 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $68,000 after purchasing an additional 4,422 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 5,580 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter worth $80,000. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mueller Water Products Company 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.