Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $214.75.

BMI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Maxim Group raised their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $189.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com downgraded Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th.

Badger Meter Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $221.00 on Monday. Badger Meter has a 52 week low of $139.50 and a 52 week high of $230.76. The company has a market capitalization of $6.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.84, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $215.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $202.06.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $208.44 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $212.08 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.56% and a net margin of 14.80%. The company’s revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Badger Meter will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.75%.

Institutional Trading of Badger Meter

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Portside Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 4.2% during the second quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,377 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Badger Meter by 1.1% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,312 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,165,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Badger Meter by 4.5% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Farrow Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 0.4% during the second quarter. Farrow Financial Inc. now owns 20,064 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $3,739,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Xponance Inc. raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 1,871 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $349,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.