Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Decreases Stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. reduced its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 83.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,740 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 19,316 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $793,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 29,414 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $6,239,000 after purchasing an additional 6,343 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 111.1% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 182,382 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $38,687,000 after purchasing an additional 95,966 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 86,560 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $18,361,000 after purchasing an additional 9,227 shares in the last quarter. AXA S.A. raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 58,121 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $12,329,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,845,000. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $241.56 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.11 billion, a PE ratio of 57.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52 week low of $162.17 and a 52 week high of $249.65. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $202.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $211.19.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.22. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. The business had revenue of $222.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.39 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be given a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 29.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Maxim Group upped their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Argus set a $240.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $209.00 to $196.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $238.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $218.00 to $216.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $229.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total value of $3,371,151.02. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,332,720.14. This trade represents a 31.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $1,064,640.24. The trade was a 18.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,949 shares of company stock worth $4,398,407 in the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Badger Meter

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.