Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) Short Interest Update

Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,470,000 shares, a growth of 26.7% from the December 15th total of 1,160,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 204,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.2 days.

Badger Meter Stock Up 0.5 %

BMI traded up $1.10 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $215.06. 132,073 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 158,110. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $218.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $209.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.79. Badger Meter has a one year low of $139.50 and a one year high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.11 by ($0.03). Badger Meter had a net margin of 14.80% and a return on equity of 21.56%. The company had revenue of $208.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.08 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. Badger Meter’s quarterly revenue was up 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Badger Meter will post 4.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a $0.34 dividend. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. Badger Meter’s payout ratio is 33.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Badger Meter

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Badger Meter by 6.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 338,198 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $73,866,000 after buying an additional 19,848 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV grew its position in Badger Meter by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 331,769 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $72,462,000 after acquiring an additional 2,515 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 295,027 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $64,437,000 after purchasing an additional 7,967 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Badger Meter by 66.4% during the 2nd quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 128,651 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $23,974,000 after purchasing an additional 51,318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in Badger Meter by 47.1% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 126,100 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $23,499,000 after purchasing an additional 40,400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Maxim Group lifted their target price on Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Badger Meter from $203.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $216.00.

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.