Xponance Inc. Has $470,000 Stock Holdings in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Xponance Inc. raised its stake in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) by 16.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,216 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Badger Meter were worth $470,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of BMI. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in Badger Meter by 2,457.1% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 179 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Badger Meter during the 4th quarter worth $39,000. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in Badger Meter in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Badger Meter by 261.8% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 597 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the period. 89.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Badger Meter news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 2,416 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.33, for a total transaction of $508,157.28. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,199 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,986,475.67. This represents a 14.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Karen M. Bauer sold 1,147 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.74, for a total transaction of $240,571.78. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,076 shares in the company, valued at $1,064,640.24. The trade was a 18.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,949 shares of company stock worth $4,398,407. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

BMI stock opened at $192.37 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.48, a PEG ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $209.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.65. Badger Meter, Inc. has a 52-week low of $151.18 and a 52-week high of $239.11.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 21.77% and a net margin of 15.12%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Maxim Group increased their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $208.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $218.75.

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.