Verition Fund Management LLC Sells 25,986 Shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Verition Fund Management LLC decreased its holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 38.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 41,711 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 25,986 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $905,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MWA. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 162,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,532,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 19,936 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $433,000 after acquiring an additional 607 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 43,722 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $783,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 1.5% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 87,308 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,895,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares in the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 3,556 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total value of $88,971.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $967,848.66. This represents a 8.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of the business’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 sale, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 72,295 shares of company stock worth $1,840,956 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of Mueller Water Products stock opened at $25.30 on Monday. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.45 and a 52 week high of $26.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 3.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.66, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $23.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.85.

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

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.067 per share. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. This is a boost from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.62%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MWA. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price target (up from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.20.

About Mueller Water Products

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.