Bailard Inc. Boosts Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Bailard Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 14.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,344 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $516,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its position in Badger Meter by 8,666.7% during the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 526 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $147.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Maxim Group lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $151.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Northcoast Research raised shares of Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Fred J. Begale sold 1,203 shares of Badger Meter stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.92, for a total value of $195,992.76. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $355,328.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP Fred J. Begale sold 1,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.92, for a total transaction of $195,992.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $355,328.52. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 194 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.55, for a total transaction of $30,952.70. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,672 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,181,367.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,813 shares of company stock worth $448,167 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $185.52 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $160.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $152.30. The company has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.46, a PEG ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.86. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52-week low of $130.75 and a 52-week high of $187.41.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $196.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.25 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 20.26%. Badger Meter’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.66 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 3.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.12%.

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.