Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Sets New 12-Month Low – Time to Sell?

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $22.73 and last traded at $22.7950, with a volume of 242222 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $23.08.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays initiated coverage on Mueller Water Products in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Mueller Water Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on Mueller Water Products from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 target price on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mueller Water Products has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.20.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 0.8%

The firm has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 4.64, a quick ratio of 3.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $25.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.34.

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 return on equity of 23.55% and a net margin of 15.02%.The firm had revenue of $395.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.49 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.34 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products will post 1.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend 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 Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In related news, Director Christine Ortiz sold 12,048 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.23, for a total value of $291,923.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 30,824 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $746,865.52. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at 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 the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.33 per share, with a total value of $29,965.39. Following the acquisition, 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 ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,598 shares of company stock valued at $1,360,685. Company insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MWA. Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the first quarter worth about $1,571,000. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI acquired a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the fourth quarter valued at about $75,400,000. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,222,000. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 123,367 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,939,000 after purchasing an additional 45,742 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,516,000. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.