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

Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) has been assigned a consensus rating 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 recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $25.80.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MWA. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective (up from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, November 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Mueller Water Products Trading Down 1.0 %

MWA stock opened at $25.05 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a PE ratio of 29.12, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 3.83 and a quick ratio of 2.38. Mueller Water Products has a 12 month low of $14.81 and a 12 month high of $28.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $23.88 and its 200 day moving average is $22.91.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.06. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 21.18%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.13 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 57,948 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.69, for a total transaction of $1,488,684.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 43,224 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,424.56. This represents a 57.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Suzanne G. Smith sold 26,138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.99, for a total value of $653,188.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $234,356.22. The trade was a 73.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mueller Water Products

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth approximately $342,000. Palisades Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the fourth quarter worth $5,362,000. PharVision Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the fourth quarter worth $362,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 516,282 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,616,000 after buying an additional 66,243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 22,370 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $503,000 after acquiring an additional 3,303 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

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.