Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Takes Position in Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 42,485 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,304,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. owned approximately 0.15% of Badger Meter as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. XXEC Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the second quarter valued at about $825,029,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the second quarter worth about $725,926,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the 4th quarter valued at about $83,819,000. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings 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 valued at $124,293,000 after acquiring an additional 335,953 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its holdings 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 valued at $131,592,000 after acquiring an additional 212,448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BMI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $170.00 target price on Badger Meter and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Zacks Research raised Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Seaport Research Partners set a $160.00 price target on Badger Meter in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Robert W. Baird set a $167.00 price objective on Badger Meter and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Badger Meter currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $164.00.

Badger Meter Trading Up 0.3%

Badger Meter stock opened at $132.19 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.65. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $112.09 and a twelve month high of $204.00. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $137.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.06.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.01. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 18.03% and a net margin of 14.27%.The firm had revenue of $220.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $220.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.17 EPS. Badger Meter’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 28th. This is a boost from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.38%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Edward F. Callahan acquired 751 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $135.25 per share, with a total value of $101,572.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 1,937 shares in the company, valued at $261,979.25. This represents a 63.32% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Profile

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.