Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. Has $14.78 Million Stock Position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. lowered its stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 14.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 680,886 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 111,783 shares during the period. Mueller Water Products makes up 2.7% of Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. owned 0.44% of Mueller Water Products worth $14,775,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 757,810 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,193,000 after purchasing an additional 27,000 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at about $452,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 194.4% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,033,939 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,528,000 after purchasing an additional 682,740 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 694,469 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,175,000 after purchasing an additional 83,567 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 19.9% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 191,210 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,077,000 after purchasing an additional 31,739 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

MWA stock traded up $0.02 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $25.15. 63,736 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,253,483. The company has a 50-day moving average of $21.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.97. The company has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.44, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.34. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.08 and a twelve month high of $26.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 3.70 and a quick ratio of 2.31.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22. The business had revenue of $348.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $324.80 million. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 19.71%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.19 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.067 per share. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. This is a boost from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas J. Hansen sold 10,791 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.55, for a total transaction of $221,755.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 102,792 shares in the company, valued at $2,112,375.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MWA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $20.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price target (up previously from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, November 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $22.20.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.