Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. Takes Position in Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI)

Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,270 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in BMI. Wealth Alliance purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth about $204,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 254,870 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $39,344,000 after purchasing an additional 7,094 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 288,004 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $44,459,000 after purchasing an additional 4,766 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Badger Meter during the fourth quarter worth about $1,069,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its holdings in Badger Meter by 88.0% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 26,362 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $4,070,000 after purchasing an additional 12,339 shares during the last quarter. 89.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Badger Meter Trading Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE BMI traded down $3.43 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $190.56. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 373,812 shares, compared to its average volume of 169,160. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $191.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.83. Badger Meter, Inc. has a one year low of $134.06 and a one year high of $202.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.78.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.14. Badger Meter had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 20.26%. The company had revenue of $216.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $203.39 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 3.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 24th were given a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 23rd. Badger Meter’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

BMI has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Badger Meter from $151.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $175.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com raised shares of Badger Meter from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Northcoast Research raised shares of Badger Meter from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Maxim Group lifted their price objective on shares of Badger Meter from $190.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $174.75.

Badger Meter Company 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.