Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $17.60 Million Stock Holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its stake in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 21.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 811,203 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 222,736 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $17,603,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Mueller Water Products by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 15,003,366 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $216,048,000 after buying an additional 147,482 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 193,595 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,115,000 after purchasing an additional 21,604 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 17.7% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 76,409 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,229,000 after purchasing an additional 11,463 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products in the 1st quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Mueller Water Products during the first quarter worth about $408,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.68% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Christine Ortiz sold 8,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.94, for a total transaction of $175,472.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 34,699 shares in the company, valued at $691,898.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider J Scott Hall sold 102,025 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.54, for a total transaction of $1,993,568.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 544,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,630,326.66. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Christine Ortiz sold 8,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.94, for a total transaction of $175,472.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,699 shares in the company, valued at approximately $691,898.06. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 256,869 shares of company stock worth $5,141,842. Company insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. TD Cowen cut Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the company from $19.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price objective on shares of Mueller Water Products from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.60.

Mueller Water Products Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MWA opened at $21.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 3.70 and a quick ratio of 2.31. The firm has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $21.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.30. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a one year low of $12.13 and a one year high of $23.12.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.10. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 19.46%. The business had revenue of $356.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $329.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.18 earnings per share. Mueller Water Products’s revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 0.93 EPS for the current year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. This is an increase from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is presently 33.33%.

About Mueller Water Products

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.