Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ Lowers Stock Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ trimmed its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,424 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 628 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ owned about 0.09% of Badger Meter worth $5,110,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 2,633.3% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 492 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 46.3% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 499 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 40.9% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 575 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $107,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 615 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TFO Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 91,500.0% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 916 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BMI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $180.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $175.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $204.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Four equities research 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, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $184.20.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $217.07 on Monday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12-month low of $134.06 and a 12-month high of $219.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.56, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $200.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $186.64.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $216.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $203.39 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.44% and a return on equity of 21.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.76 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 23rd were issued a $0.34 dividend. This is an increase from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 23rd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is 39.19%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Kimberly K. Stoll sold 1,097 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total value of $224,885.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,861 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $791,505. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

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.