Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. Buys 6,850 Shares of Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. raised its stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 126,830 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 6,850 shares during the period. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. owned about 0.08% of Mueller Water Products worth $2,854,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 2,962.3% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,015,009 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,838,000 after purchasing an additional 2,916,552 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Mueller Water Products by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,618,782 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $197,456,000 after purchasing an additional 791,569 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 67.5% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,644,603 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $37,004,000 after buying an additional 662,637 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 4th quarter worth $12,757,000. Finally, Lightrock Netherlands B.V. purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the fourth quarter valued at $9,780,000. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In related news, CAO Suzanne G. Smith sold 26,138 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.99, for a total value of $653,188.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 9,378 shares in the company, valued at $234,356.22. This trade represents a 73.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 11,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.73, for a total transaction of $275,294.36. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 7,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,408.48. This represents a 60.15 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Mueller Water Products Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:MWA opened at $25.07 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 3.83. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $14.81 and a fifty-two week high of $28.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.39.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.06. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 21.18%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.067 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.07%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.23%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 price objective (up from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, November 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mueller Water Products currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.80.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.