Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Shares Sold by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC decreased its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 19.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 46,800 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 11,012 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.16% of Badger Meter worth $9,959,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 363,164 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $77,034,000 after buying an additional 68,137 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 350,378 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $74,322,000 after purchasing an additional 12,180 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 335,105 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $71,083,000 after purchasing an additional 23,606 shares in the last quarter. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Badger Meter by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Bowen Hanes & Co. Inc. now owns 222,420 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $47,180,000 after purchasing an additional 10,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 212,024 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $44,975,000 after purchasing an additional 4,631 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Trading Down 6.5 %

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $172.82 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.85, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $205.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $212.92. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12-month low of $151.18 and a 12-month 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, research analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.79%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.15%.

Insider Activity

In other Badger Meter news, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of Badger Meter stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $240,571.78. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,064,640.24. The trade was a 18.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $31,395.24. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. This represents a 1.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on BMI shares. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on 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 raised their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Badger Meter has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $225.20.

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.