Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. Takes $213,000 Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,747 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Advisor Partners II LLC boosted its position in Badger Meter by 3.0% during the first quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 3,070 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,262 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $889,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. NY increased its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. NY now owns 1,798 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $196,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY lifted its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co NY now owns 1,798 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $196,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flputnam Investment Management Co. raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 1.9% during the first quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 5,271 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $642,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on BMI. Maxim Group upped their target price on Badger Meter from $152.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 21st. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “hold” rating and set a $142.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Tuesday, September 12th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Badger Meter from $125.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 21st. StockNews.com started coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Wednesday, June 28th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $142.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Badger Meter presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $152.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Badger Meter news, Director Todd A. Adams sold 2,627 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $162.64, for a total transaction of $427,255.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Badger Meter Price Performance

NYSE BMI opened at $161.59 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $160.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $143.04. Badger Meter, Inc. has a one year low of $88.16 and a one year high of $170.86. The firm has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 61.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.87.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $175.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $156.32 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 17.21% and a net margin of 12.28%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.57 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 2.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 25th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a boost from Badger Meter’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 24th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is currently 41.06%.

About Badger Meter

Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions in the United States, Asia, Canada, Europe, Mexico, the Middle East, and internationally. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities.