Convergence Investment Partners LLC Buys 20,016 Shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Convergence Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 44.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 64,556 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,016 shares during the period. Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $1,453,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth about $100,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 434.6% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,892 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 3,977 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 468.1% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 5,408 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 4,456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter worth about $146,000. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In other news, CAO Suzanne G. Smith sold 26,138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.99, for a total value of $653,188.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,378 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $234,356.22. This represents a 73.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction of $88,971.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $967,848.66. The trade was a 8.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 87,642 shares of company stock valued at $2,230,844. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MWA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price target (up from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.80.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Mueller Water Products stock opened at $27.06 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 3.83 and a quick ratio of 2.38. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 1 year low of $14.81 and a 1 year high of $28.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $23.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.69.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.06. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 21.18%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.13 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is presently 31.40%.

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.