Badger Meter, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.40 (NYSE:BMI)

Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE:BMI) declared a quarterly dividend on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a dividend of 0.40 per share by the scientific and technical instruments company on Friday, March 13th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th.

Badger Meter has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.2%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 32 years. Badger Meter has a dividend payout ratio of 29.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Badger Meter to earn $5.38 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 29.7%.

Badger Meter Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE:BMI traded down $2.06 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $156.28. 89,384 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 426,262. Badger Meter has a 1 year low of $139.14 and a 1 year high of $256.08. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $166.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $175.74. The company has a market cap of $4.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.90.

Badger Meter (NYSE:BMI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.01). Badger Meter had a return on equity of 20.71% and a net margin of 15.45%.The business had revenue of $220.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $232.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.04 earnings per share. Badger Meter’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Badger Meter will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $191.00 price target (down from $229.00) on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Badger Meter from $232.00 to $190.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Argus cut shares of Badger Meter from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Barclays set a $136.00 target price on shares of Badger Meter and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $165.00 price target on shares of Badger Meter in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $181.88.

About Badger Meter

Badger Meter, founded in 1905 and headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a global leader in flow measurement and control solutions. The company’s core business centers on the design, manufacture and sale of water meters, control valves and related accessories for municipal and industrial water utilities. Over its more than a century of operation, Badger Meter has built a reputation for precision engineering, durability and compliance with international regulatory standards.

The company’s product portfolio includes mechanical and ultrasonic water meters, electromagnetic flow meters for industrial applications, and a range of control valves that help utilities manage pressure and flow in distribution networks.