Apollon Wealth Management LLC Acquires New Position in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Apollon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,082 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $265,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Badger Meter by 100.0% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 83.0% during the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 194 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter worth approximately $37,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter in the first quarter worth $67,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on BMI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $230.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $219.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $284.00 to $264.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $224.00 price objective on Badger Meter in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $237.00.

Badger Meter Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $179.89 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.19, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $181.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $208.58. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12 month low of $162.17 and a 12 month high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $238.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $235.38 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.57% and a net margin of 15.53%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. This is an increase from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 34.86%.

Badger Meter 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.