Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Decreases Position in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB trimmed its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 4.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 34,974 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 1,513 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB owned approximately 0.12% of Badger Meter worth $8,567,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Badger Meter by 22.7% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,731 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $519,000 after buying an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $369,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Badger Meter by 11.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 878 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP bought a new position in Badger Meter in the 1st quarter valued at $65,448,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 184 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Badger Meter Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $177.47 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $181.81 and its 200 day moving average is $209.07. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52 week low of $162.17 and a 52 week high of $256.08. The stock has a market cap of $5.23 billion, a PE ratio of 38.66, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.90.

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

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 22nd were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 22nd. This is a positive change from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.