Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Receives $30.20 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the five analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $30.20.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Mueller Water Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Mueller Water Products from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays started coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, August 7th.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

NYSE MWA opened at $24.02 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.08, a current ratio of 4.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market cap of $3.75 billion, a PE ratio of 17.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.01. Mueller Water Products has a 52 week low of $22.74 and a 52 week high of $31.00. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.41.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.11. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 15.02% and a return on equity of 23.55%. The firm had revenue of $395.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.49 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.34 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.39, for a total transaction of $1,055,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 42,556 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,123,052.84. This trade represents a 48.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Brian C. Healy bought 1,183 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.33 per share, with a total value of $29,965.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 24,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $631,882.18. This represents a 4.98% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 52,598 shares of company stock valued at $1,360,685. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Mueller Water Products

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of MWA. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 154.5% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 32,022 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $827,000 after purchasing an additional 19,442 shares during the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the second quarter valued at approximately $3,283,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Mueller Water Products by 2,335.3% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 4,542,541 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $117,334,000 after buying an additional 4,356,012 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Paralel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,172,000. Institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

About Mueller Water Products

Mueller Water Products, Inc designs and manufactures products used to support the operation, maintenance, and monitoring of water distribution and wastewater infrastructure. Its offerings include gate, butterfly, and check valves; fire hydrants; pipe fittings; and related products used to control and manage the flow of water through municipal and other utility systems.

The company also provides technologies and services intended to help utilities monitor their networks, identify leaks, improve asset management, and enhance operational efficiency.