Citigroup Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA)

Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 117.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 203,942 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 110,227 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $4,426,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the second quarter valued at approximately $72,000. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in Mueller Water Products by 44.2% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 4,757 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 341.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 4,355 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 434.6% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,892 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 3,977 shares in the last quarter. 91.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In related news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 3,556 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total value of $88,971.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,683 shares in the company, valued at $967,848.66. This trade represents a 8.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.40, for a total transaction of $263,300.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 136,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,328,282. This trade represents a 7.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Mueller Water Products Stock Down 0.0 %

Mueller Water Products stock opened at $25.57 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a PE ratio of 35.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.37. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.40 and a twelve month high of $26.28. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average of $23.21 and a 200-day moving average of $20.72.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.22. Mueller Water Products had a net margin of 8.82% and a return on equity of 19.38%. The business had revenue of $348.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $324.80 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.19 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mueller Water Products, Inc. will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.067 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This is an increase from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is 36.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MWA has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective (up previously from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a research note on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Mueller Water Products from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $19.00 to $20.00 in a report on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Mueller Water Products from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.20.

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.