Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Mueller Water Products, Inc. (NYSE:MWA) saw a significant drop in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,670,000 shares, a drop of 16.3% from the November 15th total of 3,190,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,240,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Mueller Water Products Price Performance

Shares of MWA opened at $24.30 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a PE ratio of 33.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 3.33 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $23.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.04. Mueller Water Products has a 1-year low of $13.49 and a 1-year high of $26.28.

Mueller Water Products (NYSE:MWA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.22. Mueller Water Products had a return on equity of 19.38% and a net margin of 8.82%. The business had revenue of $348.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $324.80 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.19 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Mueller Water Products will post 1.17 EPS for the current 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 issued a $0.067 dividend. This represents a $0.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This is an increase from Mueller Water Products’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Mueller Water Products’s dividend payout ratio is 36.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity at Mueller Water Products

In other Mueller Water Products news, SVP Todd P. Helms sold 3,556 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total transaction 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 represents a 8.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lydia W. Thomas sold 10,791 shares of Mueller Water Products stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was 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 directly owns 136,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,328,282. The trade was a 7.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 98,433 shares of company stock valued at $2,494,144 over the last quarter. 1.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Mueller Water Products

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mueller Water Products in the third quarter worth $26,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in Mueller Water Products during the 2nd quarter worth about $72,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 44.2% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 4,757 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 1,457 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Mueller Water Products by 341.0% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 5,632 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $101,000 after buying an additional 4,355 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 3,977 shares during the period. 91.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.