Orchard Capital Management LLC Sells 6,557 Shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Orchard Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 499,462 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,557 shares during the period. Mueller Water Products accounts for 2.7% of Orchard Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Orchard Capital Management LLC owned 0.32% of Mueller Water Products worth $8,950,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MWA. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 399.0% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,962,757 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,093,000 after purchasing an additional 2,369,055 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter valued at $14,642,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,498,710 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $107,981,000 after purchasing an additional 974,333 shares during the period. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 2nd quarter valued at $14,040,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 194.4% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,033,939 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,528,000 after purchasing an additional 682,740 shares during the period. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Christine Ortiz sold 8,800 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.94, for a total transaction of $175,472.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $691,898.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Christine Ortiz sold 8,800 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.94, for a total transaction of $175,472.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $691,898.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Hansen sold 10,791 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.55, for a total transaction of $221,755.05. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 102,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,112,375.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 256,869 shares of company stock valued at $5,141,842 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MWA opened at $21.28 on Friday. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.13 and a 52 week high of $21.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.25, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.34. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $18.14. The company has a quick ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 3.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.10. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 19.46%. The business had revenue of $356.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $329.67 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.18 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 0.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.064 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $0.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is currently 39.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $19.00 to $20.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.60.

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.