Abacus Wealth Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Abacus Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 10,205 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,780,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Badger Meter by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,979,893 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $694,133,000 after buying an additional 19,585 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Badger Meter by 1.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,462,807 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $358,315,000 after buying an additional 20,122 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Badger Meter by 20.9% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 970,219 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $173,262,000 after buying an additional 168,053 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its stake in Badger Meter by 39.2% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 754,402 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $131,592,000 after buying an additional 212,448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its stake in Badger Meter by 89.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 712,650 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $124,293,000 after buying an additional 335,953 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Down 2.8%

BMI stock opened at $114.19 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $139.40 and a 200 day moving average of $159.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.33 billion, a PE ratio of 25.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.68. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52 week low of $112.09 and a 52 week high of $256.08.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.76% and a net margin of 14.56%.The business had revenue of $220.71 million for the quarter. On average, equities research analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Badger Meter news, EVP Robert Wrocklage acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $122.35 per share, with a total value of $122,350.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 23,321 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,853,324.35. This trade represents a 4.48% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Christina M. Tarantino acquired 870 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 21st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $113.80 per share, for a total transaction of $99,006.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president owned 1,801 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $204,953.80. This trade represents a 93.45% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 6,628 shares of company stock valued at $777,128 and sold 3,989 shares valued at $596,002. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on BMI shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $197.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Maxim Group cut shares of Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Argus cut shares of Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $174.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $173.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Badger Meter has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.86.

About Badger Meter

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.