Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Holdings Reduced by Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC decreased its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 27,275 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 2,156 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $5,786,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,586,000. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 363,164 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $77,034,000 after acquiring an additional 68,137 shares during the period. Perpetual Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,462,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 348.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,090 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $12,034,000 after acquiring an additional 42,806 shares during the period. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,494,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $212.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $213.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $213.87. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12-month low of $150.87 and a 12-month high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is presently 32.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BMI. Maxim Group upped their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total value of $3,371,151.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,332,720.14. This trade represents a 31.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $31,395.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,980,638.63. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,949 shares of company stock worth $4,398,407. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.