Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Northcoast Research upgraded shares of Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Maxim Group lifted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $151.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $147.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $164.80.

Badger Meter Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BMI opened at $200.64 on Friday. Badger Meter has a 1 year low of $134.06 and a 1 year high of $202.81. The stock has a market cap of $5.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $175.24 and a 200 day moving average of $159.85.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $196.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.25 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 20.26%. Badger Meter’s revenue was up 23.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.66 EPS. Research analysts expect that Badger Meter will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Badger Meter

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Alliance bought a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at $204,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Badger Meter by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 288,004 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $44,459,000 after acquiring an additional 4,766 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in Badger Meter by 88.0% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 26,362 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $4,070,000 after acquiring an additional 12,339 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its position in Badger Meter by 851.3% during the fourth quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 141,591 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $21,585,000 after acquiring an additional 126,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its position in Badger Meter by 1.9% during the third quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 9,934 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

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.