Norges Bank Acquires New Shares in Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI)

Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Mueller Industries, Inc. (NYSE:MLI) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 1,478,720 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $117,351,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. William Blair Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mueller Industries during the fourth quarter valued at $201,376,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in Mueller Industries by 135.7% during the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 508,333 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $40,341,000 after purchasing an additional 292,697 shares during the period. Four Tree Island Advisory LLC bought a new position in Mueller Industries in the 4th quarter worth about $19,376,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its stake in shares of Mueller Industries by 77.4% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 393,417 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $29,152,000 after purchasing an additional 171,671 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Mueller Industries by 343.9% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 197,206 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $14,613,000 after buying an additional 152,780 shares during the last quarter. 94.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mueller Industries Stock Performance

Shares of MLI opened at $76.18 on Tuesday. Mueller Industries, Inc. has a one year low of $50.85 and a one year high of $96.81. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $79.81 and its 200-day moving average is $79.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 0.99.

Mueller Industries (NYSE:MLI) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The industrial products company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.09. Mueller Industries had a net margin of 16.05% and a return on equity of 22.97%.

Mueller Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. This is an increase from Mueller Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Mueller Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mueller Industries

In other news, Director Scott Jay Goldman sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.81, for a total value of $798,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 56,098 shares in the company, valued at $4,477,181.38. This represents a 15.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 2.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Northcoast Research raised Mueller Industries from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $105.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th.

Mueller Industries Profile

Mueller Industries, Inc manufactures and sells copper, brass, aluminum, and plastic products in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, South Korea, the Middle East, China, and Mexico. It operates through three segments: Piping Systems, Industrial Metals, and Climate. The Piping Systems segment offers copper tubes, fittings, line sets, and pipe nipples.