Mcdonald Partners LLC Reduces Stock Position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Mcdonald Partners LLC cut its holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 108,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 7,250 shares during the quarter. Mcdonald Partners LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Mueller Water Products worth $2,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 162,750 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,532,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 6.1% during the third quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 11,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 633 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 1.5% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 87,308 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,895,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mueller Water Products news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 3,556 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $967,848.66. The trade was a 8.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Suzanne G. Smith sold 26,138 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.99, for a total transaction of $653,188.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 9,378 shares in the company, valued at $234,356.22. This trade represents a 73.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 87,642 shares of company stock valued at $2,230,844 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

NYSE MWA opened at $26.81 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 3.83. The company has a market capitalization of $4.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.17, a PEG ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $23.72 and a 200 day moving average of $22.69. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a one year low of $14.81 and a one year high of $28.25.

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 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.19 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.40%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Oppenheimer restated 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. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.80.

About Mueller Water Products

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.