Teton Advisors Inc. Sells 500 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Teton Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 7.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,000 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the quarter. Teton Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $926,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 0.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,614,269 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $519,985,000 after buying an additional 27,763 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 8.6% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,024,305 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $147,367,000 after buying an additional 80,979 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 0.6% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 363,243 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $52,260,000 after buying an additional 2,093 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 29.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 324,720 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $50,127,000 after buying an additional 74,578 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,359,000. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on BMI shares. StockNews.com upgraded Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $147.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $151.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Maxim Group boosted their price target on Badger Meter from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Northcoast Research upgraded Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $164.80.

Badger Meter Price Performance

NYSE BMI traded up $4.76 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $187.28. 239,910 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 190,402. The company has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 52.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $162.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.24. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52 week low of $133.96 and a 52 week high of $188.13.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $196.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.25 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 20.26% and a net margin of 13.81%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.66 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 31.12%.

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter

In other news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 1,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.23, for a total value of $221,221.68. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 13,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,096,919.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP Fred J. Begale sold 1,203 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.92, for a total value of $195,992.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $355,328.52. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 1,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.23, for a total value of $221,221.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 13,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,096,919.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 2,813 shares of company stock valued at $448,167 in the last quarter. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.