Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI Shares Sold by Oak Ridge Investments LLC

Oak Ridge Investments LLC lessened its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 36.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,405 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,639 shares during the quarter. Oak Ridge Investments LLC’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,117,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BMI. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 62.3% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 185 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new stake in Badger Meter during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new stake in Badger Meter during the 3rd quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Badger Meter by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $161.22 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $152.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $168.18. Badger Meter, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.14 and a fifty-two week high of $256.08. The firm has a market cap of $4.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.90.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.01). Badger Meter had a return on equity of 20.71% and a net margin of 15.45%.The firm had revenue of $220.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $232.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.04 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is currently 33.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, VP Kimberly K. Stoll sold 1,634 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.01, for a total transaction of $243,482.34. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 3,256 shares in the company, valued at $485,176.56. The trade was a 33.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Fred J. Begale sold 2,064 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $309,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 3,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $456,000. The trade was a 40.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 3,989 shares of company stock worth $596,002 in the last ninety days. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on BMI shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $167.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays set a $136.00 price target on Badger Meter and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Badger Meter from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $173.00 in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $191.00 price objective (down from $229.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $183.88.

Badger Meter Profile

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company’s core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company’s product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.