Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the six analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $22.20.

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price objective (up previously from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In related news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 57,948 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.69, for a total transaction of $1,488,684.12. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 43,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,110,424.56. The trade was a 57.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.40, for a total transaction of $263,300.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 136,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,328,282. The trade was a 7.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 98,433 shares of company stock valued at $2,494,144 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mueller Water Products

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 162,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,532,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co lifted its position in Mueller Water Products by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 19,936 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $433,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 6.1% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 11,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 633 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 43,722 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $783,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Mueller Water Products during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Mueller Water Products stock opened at $22.37 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.38. Mueller Water Products has a 52 week low of $13.49 and a 52 week high of $26.28. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.58. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.22. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 19.38%. The company had revenue of $348.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $324.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.19 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. This is an increase from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.62%.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.