Insider Buying: Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Director Buys 1,183 Shares of Stock

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Director Brian Healy bought 1,183 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 24,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $631,882.18. This trade represents a 4.98% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE MWA traded down $0.34 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $24.76. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,184,681 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,212,000. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $25.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.95. Mueller Water Products has a twelve month low of $22.74 and a twelve month high of $31.00. The company has a current ratio of 4.57, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.03.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 22.11%. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter. Analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.37%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on MWA. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Barclays assumed coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mueller Water Products currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter valued at $75,400,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 34.0% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,036,679 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $165,948,000 after buying an additional 1,530,193 shares during the last quarter. Amundi increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 112.2% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 2,267,340 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $58,099,000 after buying an additional 1,198,801 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its position in Mueller Water Products by 344.1% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 945,613 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,733,000 after acquiring an additional 732,669 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in Mueller Water Products by 58.6% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,934,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,217,000 after acquiring an additional 714,913 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

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.