Robeco Schweiz AG Sells 278,669 Shares of Mueller Water Products $MWA

Robeco Schweiz AG cut its stake in Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) by 79.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 70,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 278,669 shares during the quarter. Robeco Schweiz AG’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $1,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 34.0% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,036,679 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $165,948,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530,193 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 58.6% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,934,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,217,000 after buying an additional 714,913 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the second quarter valued at about $28,496,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 30.0% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 888,975 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $24,438,000 after buying an additional 205,269 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Mueller Water Products by 354.9% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 588,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,187,000 after buying an additional 459,393 shares in the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on MWA. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays initiated coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Mueller Water Products from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Mueller Water Products from $29.00 to $24.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Mueller Water Products currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Brian Healy purchased 1,376 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $21.75 per share, for a total transaction of $29,928.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 26,322 shares in the company, valued at approximately $572,503.50. This trade represents a 5.52% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.39, for a total transaction of $1,055,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 42,556 shares in the company, valued at $1,123,052.84. This trade represents a 48.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 52,598 shares of company stock worth $1,360,685 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:MWA opened at $22.27 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 4.64, a quick ratio of 3.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.04. Mueller Water Products has a 12-month low of $20.90 and a 12-month high of $31.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.79, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.01.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.11. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 23.55% and a net margin of 15.02%. The firm had revenue of $395.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 9th will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 9th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.07. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is presently 19.86%.

Mueller Water Products declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 22nd that permits the company to buy back $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to buy up to 8.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc (NYSE:MWA) manufactures products and provides services used in the treatment, transmission, distribution, and measurement of water. Its customers include municipalities, water utilities, distributors, contractors, and industrial organizations.

The company’s product portfolio includes water valves, fire hydrants, pipe fittings, repair and connection products, and related infrastructure equipment. Through its Echologics business, Mueller also provides acoustic leak-detection technologies and other solutions designed to help utilities monitor and manage water distribution systems.

Mueller Water Products traces its history to Mueller Co, which was founded in 1857.