Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mueller Industries in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Mueller Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.00.

Mueller Industries Price Performance

Mueller Industries stock opened at $63.86 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.63 and a beta of 1.11. Mueller Industries has a one year low of $41.17 and a one year high of $70.95. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $63.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $62.25.

Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The industrial products company reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.27 billion. Mueller Industries had a return on equity of 25.68% and a net margin of 18.25%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 25.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.96 EPS.

Mueller Industries Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.175 per share. This represents a $0.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Mueller Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.23%.

Insider Activity at Mueller Industries

In other news, CEO Gregory L. Christopher sold 206,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.64, for a total transaction of $14,177,389.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,609,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,506,231.19. The trade was a 11.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mueller Industries

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 129,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,876,000 after buying an additional 2,097 shares during the last quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 100.3% during the 2nd quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 5,044 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $620,000 after acquiring an additional 2,526 shares during the last quarter. Family Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Industries during the 2nd quarter worth $205,000. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd grew its position in Mueller Industries by 84.4% in the second quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd now owns 66,392 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,162,000 after acquiring an additional 30,393 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in Mueller Industries by 4.7% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 33,245 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,087,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. 94.50% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Mueller Industries

Mueller Industries, Inc is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of copper, brass, aluminum and plastic products. Headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, the company serves a wide range of markets including HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), refrigeration, plumbing, industrial gas, automotive and agricultural sectors. Its product portfolio encompasses copper and plastic tubing, brass fittings, valves and related components designed for fluid handling and temperature control applications.

The company operates through multiple business segments, including the Plumbing & Refrigeration segment, which supplies copper and plastic tubing, fittings and valves for residential and commercial construction markets; the Industrial Metals & Mining segment, which provides aluminum shapes and specialty brass products for industrial applications; and the Climate segment, which focuses on copper tubing and components for air conditioning and refrigeration systems.