7,944 Shares in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI Acquired by Vontobel Holding Ltd.

Vontobel Holding Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 7,944 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $981,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in Badger Meter in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Dunhill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the second quarter worth $28,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the second quarter worth $29,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 212.9% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Edward Callahan acquired 751 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 30th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $135.25 per share, for a total transaction of $101,572.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,937 shares in the company, valued at approximately $261,979.25. This trade represents a 63.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $126.68 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $130.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $132.74. The stock has a market cap of $3.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.60, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.64. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52-week low of $112.09 and a 52-week high of $204.00.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.01. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.03% and a net margin of 14.27%. The business had revenue of $220.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.59 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.17 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.50 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 11th. Investors of record on Friday, August 28th were issued a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 28th. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is currently 41.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on BMI shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Badger Meter from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $165.00 to $150.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Seaport Research Partners set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $159.38.

About Badger Meter

Badger Meter, Inc is a water technology company that develops and manufactures flow measurement, control and communications solutions. Its products are used to measure and manage water across municipal, commercial and industrial applications, helping customers improve operational efficiency, monitor usage and support water conservation.

The company’s offerings include mechanical, ultrasonic and electromagnetic flow meters; valves and related flow-control equipment; and smart water technologies.