Quest Partners LLC Acquires 3,155 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Quest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 59.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,495 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 3,155 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $1,855,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of BMI. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Badger Meter by 1,016.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 201 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 2,633.3% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 492 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 46.3% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 499 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 40.9% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 575 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the 3rd quarter worth about $204,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Kimberly K. Stoll sold 1,097 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.00, for a total transaction of $224,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $791,505. This represents a 22.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:BMI opened at $212.97 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.85, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.78. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 12 month low of $139.50 and a 12 month high of $230.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $213.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $201.22.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $212.08 million. Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.80% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 33.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on BMI shares. Maxim Group lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $189.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Argus raised their price objective on Badger Meter from $204.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $214.75.

Badger Meter Company 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.