Raymond James Begins Coverage on Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI)

Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) in a research report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “market perform” rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on BMI. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Badger Meter from $209.00 to $196.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Argus set a $240.00 price objective on Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Maxim Group raised their price objective on Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $229.80.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of BMI opened at $249.68 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $217.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $214.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.03, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter has a 1-year low of $162.17 and a 1-year high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.22. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. The company had revenue of $222.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $220.39 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Badger Meter will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Badger Meter

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 162.5% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 147 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 83.0% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 194 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Badger Meter Company Profile

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.