Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) Stock Holdings Trimmed by Central Pacific Bank Trust Division

Central Pacific Bank Trust Division decreased its holdings in Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,500 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Mueller Water Products were worth $461,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Mueller Water Products by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 924,706 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $20,066,000 after buying an additional 12,391 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mueller Water Products by 369.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 98,457 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,137,000 after buying an additional 77,467 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,618,782 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $197,456,000 after acquiring an additional 791,569 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Mueller Water Products by 100.0% in the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 25,448 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $552,000 after acquiring an additional 12,724 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mueller Water Products during the third quarter valued at approximately $414,000. 91.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MWA opened at $22.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 3.33. The company has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a PE ratio of 30.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $23.93 and a 200-day moving average of $21.55. Mueller Water Products, Inc. has a one year low of $13.49 and a one year high of $26.28.

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

Mueller Water Products Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.067 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $0.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. This is a positive change from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Mueller Water Products’s payout ratio is currently 35.62%.

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now directly owns 136,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,328,282. The trade was a 7.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 3,556 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total value of $88,971.12. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $967,848.66. This trade represents a 8.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 98,433 shares of company stock worth $2,494,144. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on MWA shares. StockNews.com lowered Mueller Water Products from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $27.00 target price (up from $26.00) on shares of Mueller Water Products in a report on Friday, November 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.20.

Mueller Water Products Company 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.