Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Now Covered by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on shares of Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) in a note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set an “outperform” rating and a $251.00 price target on the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price points to a potential upside of 32.20% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group increased their price target on Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $225.20.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

NYSE:BMI opened at $189.86 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $208.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $213.49. The company has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter has a 52-week low of $151.18 and a 52-week high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. On average, equities analysts predict that Badger Meter will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth about $94,547,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in Badger Meter by 5,897.0% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 235,322 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $49,917,000 after acquiring an additional 231,398 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 184.6% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 256,217 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $54,350,000 after acquiring an additional 166,191 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the 4th quarter valued at about $20,586,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 111.1% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 182,382 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $38,687,000 after acquiring an additional 95,966 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

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.