9,548 Shares in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) Purchased by PFG Advisors

PFG Advisors bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 9,548 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter worth approximately $100,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 468.1% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 5,408 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 4,456 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $126,000 after buying an additional 726 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 6,514 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $141,000 after buying an additional 1,757 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter worth about $146,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total transaction of $457,552.84. Following the sale, the director now owns 126,689 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,391,464.53. This trade represents a 11.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 11,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.73, for a total transaction of $275,294.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 7,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $182,408.48. The trade was a 60.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $25.80.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of MWA opened at $27.29 on Friday. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.81 and a 1 year high of $28.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.27 billion, a PE ratio of 31.73, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 3.83. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.42.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.06. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 21.18%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.23%.

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.