KBC Group NV Decreases Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

KBC Group NV trimmed its holdings in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 46.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 177,141 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 154,628 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned about 0.60% of Badger Meter worth $37,575,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BMI. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Badger Meter by 1.1% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,312 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,165,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in Badger Meter by 5.0% in the second quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 1,871 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $349,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in Badger Meter by 4.6% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 2,211 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Badger Meter by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $5,523,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.01% of the company’s stock.

Badger Meter Stock Down 1.3 %

BMI stock opened at $207.62 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $218.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $210.82. Badger Meter, Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.50 and a twelve month high of $239.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.11 billion, a PE ratio of 51.52, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.79.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 22nd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Badger Meter from $203.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Badger Meter from $184.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Maxim Group boosted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $216.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $216.00.

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.