Plato Investment Management Ltd Takes $312,000 Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 1,465 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $312,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in Badger Meter by 23.1% in the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 363,164 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $77,034,000 after purchasing an additional 68,137 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 6.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 338,198 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $73,866,000 after buying an additional 19,848 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 335,105 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $71,083,000 after acquiring an additional 23,606 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in Badger Meter by 0.8% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 331,769 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $72,462,000 after acquiring an additional 2,515 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 212,024 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $44,975,000 after acquiring an additional 4,631 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Down 0.1 %

BMI stock opened at $209.55 on Wednesday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52 week low of $150.87 and a 52 week high of $239.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $213.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $213.87.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total value of $31,395.24. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on BMI shares. Maxim Group increased their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $218.75.

Badger Meter Profile

Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions worldwide. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities market. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline, including water, air, steam, and other liquids and gases to original equipment manufacturers as the primary flow measurement device within a product or system, as well as through manufacturers' representatives.