Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC reduced its position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 27,275 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 2,156 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC owned about 0.09% of Badger Meter worth $5,786,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of BMI. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Badger Meter by 2,457.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 179 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth $39,000. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Badger Meter by 261.8% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 597 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $128,000 after buying an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Badger Meter

In other Badger Meter news, CEO Kenneth Bockhorst sold 16,073 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total value of $3,371,151.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 34,961 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,332,720.14. This represents a 31.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 148 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $212.13, for a total transaction of $31,395.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,051 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,980,638.63. This trade represents a 1.04 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,949 shares of company stock valued at $4,398,407 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Shares of Badger Meter stock opened at $212.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.26 billion, a PE ratio of 50.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $213.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $213.87. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $150.87 and a 1 year high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.77%. On average, equities analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Maxim Group upped their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $218.75.

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.