Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Announces Earnings Results

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.03), Briefing.com reports. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.44% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The company had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE BMI opened at $207.66 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $209.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $195.07. Badger Meter has a one year low of $134.06 and a one year high of $230.76. The company has a market cap of $6.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.77.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Friday, August 23rd were paid a $0.34 dividend. This is an increase from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, VP Kimberly K. Stoll sold 1,097 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total value of $224,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,861 shares in the company, valued at $791,505. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Badger Meter

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 1,016.7% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 201 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 2,633.3% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 492 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 46.3% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 499 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 40.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 575 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 3rd quarter worth $204,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on BMI shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Maxim Group upped their target price on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Badger Meter from $189.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Argus upped their target price on Badger Meter from $204.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $214.75.

About Badger Meter

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.