Cibc World Markets Corp Makes New Investment in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 14,541 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $327,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MWA. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,618,782 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $197,456,000 after purchasing an additional 791,569 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 0.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,931,662 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $85,317,000 after buying an additional 12,438 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 2.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,538,901 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $76,809,000 after buying an additional 73,069 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 2,962.3% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,015,009 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $67,838,000 after acquiring an additional 2,916,552 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,952,282 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $43,926,000 after acquiring an additional 7,567 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Brian Slobodow sold 11,132 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.73, for a total value of $275,294.36. Following the sale, the director now owns 7,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $182,408.48. The trade was a 60.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 17,092 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.77, for a total value of $457,552.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 126,689 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,464.53. The trade was a 11.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on MWA. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Mueller Water Products from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Mueller Water Products from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $25.80.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MWA opened at $27.76 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.35 billion, a PE ratio of 32.27, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a quick ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 3.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $25.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.73. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.81 and a twelve month high of $28.58.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.06. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 21.18% and a net margin of 10.05%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.24 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.067 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.97%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.23%.

Mueller Water Products Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc manufactures and markets products and services for the transmission, distribution, and measurement of water used by municipalities, and the residential and non-residential construction industries in the United States, Israel, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Water Flow Solutions and Water Management Solutions.