Contrasting Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) & Spectris (OTCMKTS:SEPJF)

Spectris (OTCMKTS:SEPJF) and Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) are both technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and risk.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

61.3% of Spectris shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.0% of Badger Meter shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of Badger Meter shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Spectris and Badger Meter”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Spectris	N/A	N/A	N/A	$1.17	44.36
Badger Meter	$880.96 million	4.35	$141.63 million	$4.28	30.89

Badger Meter has higher revenue and earnings than Spectris. Badger Meter is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Spectris, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Spectris pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Badger Meter pays an annual dividend of $1.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Spectris pays out 23.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Badger Meter pays out 41.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Badger Meter has increased its dividend for 32 consecutive years. Badger Meter is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Spectris and Badger Meter, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Spectris	0	1	0	0	2.00
Badger Meter	1	5	5	0	2.36

Badger Meter has a consensus target price of $164.00, suggesting a potential upside of 24.06%. Given Badger Meter’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Badger Meter is more favorable than Spectris.

Profitability

This table compares Spectris and Badger Meter’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Spectris	N/A	N/A	N/A
Badger Meter	14.27%	18.03%	12.82%

Summary

Badger Meter beats Spectris on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Spectris

Spectris plc provides precision measurement solutions worldwide. It operates through Spectris Scientific, Spectris Dynamics, and Other segments. The Spectris Scientific segment provides advanced sensors and instruments used to measure, analyze, and characterize materials; and monitor ultra-clean manufacturing environments. Spectris Dynamics segment offers differentiated sensing, data acquisition, analysis modelling, and simulation solutions for product development and enhance product performance. The Other segment operates high-value precision in-line sensing and monitoring businesses. It serves life sciences/pharmaceuticals, technology-led industrials, automotive, electronics and semiconductor, academic research, and other markets, as well as metals, minerals, and mining. The company was formerly known as Fairey Group plc and changed its name to Spectris plc in May 2001. Spectris plc was incorporated in 1986 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

About Badger Meter

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. In addition, the company offers ORION Cellular endpoints to power network as a service; ORION mobile read endpoints support for deploying AMR solution; radio products; hardware, instruments, and sensors, and related software, to enhance connected data to a water utility's operation; water quality monitoring solutions, including optical sensing and electrochemical instruments; and high frequency pressure and leak detection sensors to aid in burst pipe and leak events; as well as BEACON, a secure cloud-hosted software suite that establishes alerts for specific conditions and allows consumer engagement tools that permit end water customers to view and manage their water usage activity. Its flow instrumentation products are used in water/wastewater, heating, ventilating and air conditioning, and corporate sustainability markets. The company serves water utilities, commercial, and industrial industries; and provides training, project management, technical support, and other collaborative services for customers. It sells its products and software directly, as well as through resellers and representatives. The company was incorporated in 1905 and is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.