Trust Co of the South Makes New $394,000 Investment in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Trust Co of the South purchased a new stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 1,856 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $394,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in BMI. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Badger Meter by 14.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 18,317 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,126,000 after buying an additional 2,276 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 2,211 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $483,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 8,750 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,911,000 after acquiring an additional 726 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 348.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 55,090 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $12,034,000 after purchasing an additional 42,806 shares during the period. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 636.4% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 950 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $207,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BMI. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Badger Meter from $203.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Maxim Group boosted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $216.00.

Badger Meter Price Performance

Shares of BMI stock traded down $1.38 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $210.74. 111,505 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 181,985. The business’s fifty day moving average is $217.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.79. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.50 and a 12-month high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.03). Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.56% and a net margin of 14.80%. The firm had revenue of $208.44 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.08 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were given a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.75%.

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.