Royce & Associates LP Acquires 1,782 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Royce & Associates LP increased its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 66.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,481 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,782 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $951,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Badger Meter by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 350,378 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $74,322,000 after acquiring an additional 12,180 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. acquired a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth $385,000. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in Badger Meter by 68.1% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 33,395 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $7,083,000 after acquiring an additional 13,526 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in Badger Meter by 29.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 11,971 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $2,615,000 after acquiring an additional 2,692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fortress Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth $369,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of BMI opened at $189.36 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $210.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $213.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52 week low of $151.18 and a 52 week high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is currently 32.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BMI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group upped their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.75.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In related news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 34,961 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,332,720.14. The trade was a 31.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the company’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 directly owns 14,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. The trade was a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 over the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.