Vanguard Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Mueller Water Products $MWA

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) by 1.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,589,166 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 258,426 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 12.53% of Mueller Water Products worth $499,916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 31.0% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,427 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 575 shares in the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP boosted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 22,513 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $575,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 131.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,050 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 6.3% in the third quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 10,572 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 629 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 1.4% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 46,362 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,183,000 after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,125 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.41 per share, for a total transaction of $27,461.25. Following the acquisition, the director owned 17,925 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $437,549.25. This trade represents a 6.70% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 15,094 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.62, for a total value of $371,614.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 85,917 shares in the company, valued at $2,115,276.54. This trade represents a 14.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

MWA opened at $29.89 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.72, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 4.02, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $26.82 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.82. Mueller Water Products has a 12-month low of $22.01 and a 12-month high of $30.47.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $318.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.26 million. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 13.83% and a return on equity of 22.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were paid a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 10th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MWA. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Mueller Water Products from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $33.00 price objective on Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $32.00 target price (up from $30.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mueller Water Products has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.33.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc is a leading provider of water infrastructure and flow control products and services designed to help water utilities and municipalities manage, control and measure their water distribution systems. The company’s portfolio includes a comprehensive range of products such as fire hydrants, valves, pipe repair systems, fittings and couplings, along with advanced metering and monitoring solutions. By combining traditional mechanical components with digital technologies, Mueller Water Products addresses the critical need for reliable and sustainable water distribution across North America.

The company’s operations are organized around two primary business segments.