Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Upgraded at Royal Bank Of Canada

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) was upgraded by analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada to a “strong sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on MWA. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price target on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, August 7th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings downgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Mueller Water Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.40.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Mueller Water Products stock opened at $21.88 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.51, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.01. Mueller Water Products has a 52-week low of $21.77 and a 52-week high of $31.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 3.08 and a current ratio of 4.64. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $24.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.18.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $395.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $391.49 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.34 EPS. Mueller Water Products’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Brian Healy purchased 1,183 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $25.33 per share, for a total transaction of $29,965.39. Following the purchase, the director owned 24,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $631,882.18. This trade represents a 4.98% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 42,556 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,123,052.84. The trade was a 48.45% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale 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 sold 52,598 shares of company stock worth $1,360,685. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Mueller Water Products

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MWA. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Mueller Water Products in the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 89.5% during the 1st quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the second quarter worth approximately $60,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the first quarter worth approximately $121,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 10.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares during the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.