Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $216.00.

Several research firms recently weighed in on BMI. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Maxim Group upped their target price on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $203.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE BMI opened at $215.06 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $218.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $209.99. Badger Meter has a twelve month low of $139.50 and a twelve month high of $239.11. The stock has a market cap of $6.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.37, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.79.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Badger Meter

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ORG Partners LLC bought a new stake in Badger Meter in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 1,016.7% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 201 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Badger Meter by 61.3% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 805 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $176,000 after buying an additional 306 shares during the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Badger Meter during the third quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, ORBA Wealth Advisors L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the third quarter worth about $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

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.