Candriam S.C.A. Trims Holdings in Mueller Water Products $MWA

Candriam S.C.A. lowered its position in shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) by 37.1% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 183,650 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 108,158 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $5,049,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC increased its stake in Mueller Water Products by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 11,727 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $322,000 after buying an additional 916 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd boosted its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 26.0% during the first quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 11,529 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 2,378 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. bought a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at $212,000. Abel Hall LLC purchased a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter worth $247,000. Finally, Marietta Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 1st quarter valued at about $270,000. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Mueller Water Products from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays initiated coverage on Mueller Water Products in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $29.00 target price on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Mueller Water Products currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.00.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MWA opened at $24.58 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.57, a quick ratio of 2.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Mueller Water Products has a 12 month low of $22.74 and a 12 month high of $31.00. The company has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.76, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $25.64 and its 200 day moving average is $26.95.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 22.11% and a net margin of 14.17%. Research analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Brian C. Healy acquired 1,183 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $25.33 per share, for a total transaction of $29,965.39. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 24,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $631,882.18. This represents a 4.98% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Mueller Water Products Profile

Mueller Water Products, Inc is a leading provider of water infrastructure and flow control products and services designed to help water utilities and municipalities manage, control and measure their water distribution systems. The company’s portfolio includes a comprehensive range of products such as fire hydrants, valves, pipe repair systems, fittings and couplings, along with advanced metering and monitoring solutions. By combining traditional mechanical components with digital technologies, Mueller Water Products addresses the critical need for reliable and sustainable water distribution across North America.

The company’s operations are organized around two primary business segments.