PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Sells 5,375 Shares of Badger Meter, Inc. $BMI

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 31.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,968 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 5,375 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $2,932,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BMI. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter in the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. raised its stake in shares of Badger Meter by 170.5% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 165 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter in the second quarter valued at approximately $66,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the first quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Badger Meter during the second quarter worth $80,000. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Badger Meter Price Performance

NYSE:BMI opened at $171.98 on Wednesday. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 1 year low of $162.17 and a 1 year high of $256.08. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $179.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $206.54. The company has a market cap of $5.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.59, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.94.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $235.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $231.88 million. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.12% and a net margin of 15.40%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.04%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Badger Meter from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of Badger Meter from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Badger Meter in a report on Tuesday, September 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $229.00 target price on Badger Meter and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $208.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $227.33.

Badger Meter 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.