US Bancorp DE trimmed its stake in shares of Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI – Get Rating) by 2.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,506 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock after selling 688 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE owned approximately 0.12% of Badger Meter worth $3,440,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in BMI. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Badger Meter in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Badger Meter by 60.6% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 355 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank N A MO bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $85,000. Finally, Kepos Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Badger Meter during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $94,000. 86.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Badger Meter news, VP William R. A. Bergum sold 2,362 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.40, for a total value of $227,696.80. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,861 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,143,400.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Badger Meter Stock Performance

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.04. Badger Meter had a return on equity of 15.83% and a net margin of 12.00%. The company had revenue of $137.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $132.04 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.48 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Badger Meter, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Badger Meter Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 26th will be paid a $0.225 dividend. This is a positive change from Badger Meter's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 25th. Badger Meter's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on BMI shares. StockNews.com raised Badger Meter from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 26th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Badger Meter from $95.00 to $80.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 9th. TheStreet raised Badger Meter from a "c+" rating to a "b-" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 3rd. Northcoast Research initiated coverage on Badger Meter in a research report on Friday, July 15th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Badger Meter from $88.00 to $79.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Badger Meter currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $94.67.

Badger Meter Profile

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Badger Meter, Inc manufactures and markets flow measurement, quality, control, and communication solutions in the United States, Asia, Canada, Europe, Mexico, the Middle East, and internationally. It offers mechanical or static water meters, and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities.

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