KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes $6.68 Million Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 31,500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,682,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS owned 0.11% of Badger Meter at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of BMI. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in Badger Meter by 2,457.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 179 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 261.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 597 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 432 shares during the period. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $240,571.78. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,064,640.24. This trade represents a 18.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $31,395.24. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,980,638.63. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 over the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on BMI. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group increased their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.75.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of BMI opened at $195.97 on Wednesday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $151.18 and a 1 year high of $239.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.76 billion, a PE ratio of 46.33, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $209.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.80.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. Analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is currently 32.15%.

About Badger Meter

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.