Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) Position Reduced by Castleark Management LLC

Castleark Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 369,400 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 15,580 shares during the quarter. Castleark Management LLC’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $8,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 45,215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,017,000 after buying an additional 379 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 42,929 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $966,000 after purchasing an additional 581 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 24,702 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $556,000 after acquiring an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 14.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 5,618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 16,255 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $366,000 after buying an additional 768 shares during the period. 91.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In related news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total value of $457,552.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 126,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,464.53. The trade was a 11.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,085 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.32 per share, for a total transaction of $27,472.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 14,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $370,178.40. This trade represents a 8.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,600 shares of company stock worth $914,076. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE MWA opened at $25.27 on Wednesday. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.09 and a 12-month high of $28.58. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.82. The company has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 3.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $364.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $352.30 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.18% and a net margin of 10.05%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.30 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 12th will be given a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 12th. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.06%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com lowered Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped 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 note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.25.

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.