Carderock Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Carderock Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 71.4% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,492 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 7,702 shares during the quarter. Carderock Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $3,302,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth $227,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Badger Meter by 4.4% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 17,411 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $3,312,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 11.6% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 618 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the first quarter worth about $363,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 66.5% in the 1st quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 32,746 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $6,230,000 after purchasing an additional 13,079 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE BMI opened at $180.82 on Monday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $162.17 and a fifty-two week high of $256.08. The stock has a market cap of $5.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $180.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $193.93.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $235.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $231.88 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.12% and a net margin of 15.40%.The firm’s revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is presently 34.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on BMI. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Friday, December 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $220.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $240.00 to $235.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $208.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $229.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $227.00.

Badger Meter Company Profile

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company’s core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company’s product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.