Soviero Asset Management LP Reduces Position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Soviero Asset Management LP cut its position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 8.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 115,000 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 10,000 shares during the period. Soviero Asset Management LP owned 0.07% of Mueller Water Products worth $2,588,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 361.6% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 266,155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,775,000 after purchasing an additional 208,502 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 697,618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $15,696,000 after purchasing an additional 50,119 shares during the last quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 57.9% in the 4th quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 31,931 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 11,711 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 199,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,494,000 after buying an additional 22,045 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter valued at $1,573,000. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In other news, Director Brian C. Healy bought 1,085 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.32 per share, for a total transaction of $27,472.20. Following the purchase, the director now owns 14,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $370,178.40. The trade was a 8.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Brian Slobodow sold 11,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $182,408.48. This trade represents a 60.15% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 35,600 shares of company stock worth $914,076. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MWA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.25.

Mueller Water Products Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of Mueller Water Products stock opened at $25.64 on Monday. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 1 year low of $17.09 and a 1 year high of $28.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a current ratio of 3.83. The company has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.81, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s fifty day moving average is $25.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.79.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 10.05% and a return on equity of 21.18%. The company had revenue of $364.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $352.30 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. Mueller Water Products’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be paid a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 12th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.57%.

About Mueller Water Products

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.