Robert W. Baird Boosts Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Price Target to $203.00

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) had its target price increased by Robert W. Baird from $184.00 to $203.00 in a report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Robert W. Baird currently has a neutral rating on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. StockNews.com downgraded Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Badger Meter from $189.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Argus increased 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $214.75.

Badger Meter Stock Down 1.6 %

BMI stock opened at $204.34 on Friday. Badger Meter has a twelve month low of $134.06 and a twelve month high of $230.76. The company has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.77. The business’s fifty day moving average is $209.84 and its 200-day moving average is $195.68.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.08 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.44% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Badger Meter will post 4.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a boost from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. 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

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,674,493 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $594,570,000 after acquiring an additional 22,707 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Badger Meter by 7.0% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 337,391 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $62,873,000 after purchasing an additional 22,160 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA increased its position in shares of Badger Meter by 14.3% during the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 278,606 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $45,081,000 after purchasing an additional 34,817 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 160,359 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $25,948,000 after purchasing an additional 2,095 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 66.4% in the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 128,651 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $23,974,000 after buying an additional 51,318 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by 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.