Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Stock Holdings Lessened by Eagle Asset Management Inc.

Eagle Asset Management Inc. cut its stake in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,138 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 2,696 shares during the quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. owned 0.18% of Badger Meter worth $11,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $10,622,000. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 66.4% in the second quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 128,651 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $23,974,000 after buying an additional 51,318 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 86.2% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 100,788 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $18,782,000 after buying an additional 46,650 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in Badger Meter by 47.1% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 126,100 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $23,499,000 after buying an additional 40,400 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 80.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 78,914 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $14,706,000 after acquiring an additional 35,150 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BMI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Badger Meter from $189.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Maxim Group increased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. StockNews.com cut shares of Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $214.75.

Badger Meter Price Performance

Badger Meter stock opened at $221.00 on Friday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a one year low of $139.50 and a one year high of $230.76. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $215.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $201.99. The company has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.84, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.78.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $212.08 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.80% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is presently 33.75%.

Badger Meter 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.