Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) Trading Down 3.8% – Here’s Why

by · The Cerbat Gem

Shares of Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA – Get Free Report) traded down 3.8% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $22.00 and last traded at $21.8750. 251,676 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 1,171,327 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.74.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MWA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered shares of Mueller Water Products from a “sector perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $21.00 in a report on Wednesday. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $25.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.40.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on MWA

Mueller Water Products Stock Up 0.3%

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $24.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.15. 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 stock has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.01.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $395.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.49 million. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 15.02% and a return on equity of 23.55%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.34 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is 19.86%.

Insider Transactions at Mueller Water Products

In related news, CEO Paul McAndrew sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Brian C. Healy bought 1,183 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.33 per share, with a total value of $29,965.39. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 24,946 shares in the company, valued at $631,882.18. The trade was a 4.98% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 52,598 shares of company stock worth $1,360,685. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,487 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 421 shares in the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 3.8% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 12,308 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. lifted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 11,672 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 503 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 12.0% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 6,470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $154,000 after buying an additional 692 shares during the period. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Mueller Water Products by 89.5% during the first quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 914 shares during the period. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mueller Water Products Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

Further Reading