Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Sets New 52-Week Low – Here’s Why

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $22.73 and last traded at $22.7950, with a volume of 242222 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.08.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MWA. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mueller Water Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Barclays began coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.20.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.24, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.01. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.34. The company has a quick ratio of 3.08, a current ratio of 4.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $395.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.49 million. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 15.02% and a return on equity of 23.55%. The business’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.34 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products will post 1.58 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.86%.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Brian Healy bought 1,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.33 per share, for a total transaction of $29,965.39. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $631,882.18. The trade was a 4.98% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.39, for a total value of $1,055,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 42,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,052.84. This represents a 48.45% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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 valued at $1,360,685 in the last ninety days. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 154.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 32,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $827,000 after purchasing an additional 19,442 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 2nd quarter valued at $60,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the 2nd quarter worth $3,283,000. Paralel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the 2nd quarter worth $2,172,000. Finally, Strive Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 333.6% during the second quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC now owns 5,294 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $137,000 after buying an additional 4,073 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc designs and manufactures products used to support the operation, maintenance, and monitoring of water distribution and wastewater infrastructure. Its offerings include gate, butterfly, and check valves; fire hydrants; pipe fittings; and related products used to control and manage the flow of water through municipal and other utility systems.

The company also provides technologies and services intended to help utilities monitor their networks, identify leaks, improve asset management, and enhance operational efficiency.