Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $30.36 and last traded at $30.29, with a volume of 43820 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.15.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MWA shares. Robert W. Baird set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $32.00 price objective (up previously from $30.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Monday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Mueller Water Products currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.33.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 2.55 and a current ratio of 4.02. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $26.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $25.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.17.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $318.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.26 million. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 22.34% and a net margin of 13.83%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Brian C. Healy bought 1,125 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $24.41 per share, with a total value of $27,461.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 17,925 shares in the company, valued at $437,549.25. The trade was a 6.70% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 15,094 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.62, for a total transaction of $371,614.28. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 85,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,115,276.54. This represents a 14.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MWA. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Mueller Water Products by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 22,808 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 47.0% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 44.8% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,517 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its stake in Mueller Water Products by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 35,732 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $851,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 11,672 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc is a leading provider of water infrastructure and flow control products and services designed to help water utilities and municipalities manage, control and measure their water distribution systems. The company’s portfolio includes a comprehensive range of products such as fire hydrants, valves, pipe repair systems, fittings and couplings, along with advanced metering and monitoring solutions. By combining traditional mechanical components with digital technologies, Mueller Water Products addresses the critical need for reliable and sustainable water distribution across North America.

The company’s operations are organized around two primary business segments.