Badger Meter

BMI · NYSE

$129.01+$2.75 (+2.18%)TodayMarket closed · Oct 20, 7:30 PM ET

Prev close $126.26

BMI analyst rating

BuyConsensus of 9 analysts over the last 12 months. 67% rate it a buy.

Strong buy0
Buy6
Hold2
Underperform1
Sell0

12-month price target · 11 analysts

Average $164.43 (+27.5% upside)

Low: $113.12
Now: $129.01
High: $220.50

Upgrades and downgrades

The latest rating actions, newest first

BMI analyst upgrades, downgrades and rating actions
Firm	Date	Action	Rating	Price target	Hit rate
Stifel	Oct 19, 2026	Maintains	Buy	$165.00 → $150.00	61%
Barclays	Oct 13, 2026	Maintains	Underweight	$112.00 → $111.00	29%
Barclays	Jul 28, 2026	Maintains	Underweight	$109.00 → $112.00	29%
JP Morgan	Jul 23, 2026	Maintains	Overweight	$172.00 → $170.00	38%
Baird	Jul 23, 2026	Maintains	Outperform	$170.00 → $167.00	67%
RBC Capital	Jul 23, 2026	Maintains	Outperform	$169.00 → $162.00	43%
Stifel	Jul 23, 2026	Maintains	Buy	$170.00 → $165.00	61%
Stifel	Jul 20, 2026	Maintains	Buy	$140.00 → $170.00	61%
Barclays	Jul 13, 2026	Maintains	Underweight	$110.00 → $109.00	29%
Maxim Group	Apr 23, 2026	Downgrade	Buy → Hold	—	40%

The case for and against

Updated Oct 14, 2026

Bull case

Badger Meter is supported by a durable, defensive water metering franchise with an oligopolistic U.S. market structure, where replacement demand accounts for more than 85% of sales and ongoing shifts from mechanical to ultrasonic and from manual-read to AMR/AMI meters lift average selling prices from about $70 to $200-$250. The company’s 2Q26 operating beat, a confirmed ramp in previously awarded AMI projects, and a ~$26 million inventory build since year-end suggest shipments are poised to accelerate, with management guiding to flat-ish 2026 organic revenue that implies roughly +8% growth in 2H26 after 1H26 organic revenue fell about 8% year over year. Further support comes from a growing high-margin software layer, a 100% attachment rate with BEACON for smart meters, ~$80 million of buybacks over the past three quarters, and a net cash position of $96 million that preserves strategic flexibility for investment and M&A.

Bear case

Badger Meter is facing a fundamentally weaker setup because its core Utility Water business, about 90% of sales, posted an organic decline of roughly 9.1% in 2Q26 while EPS fell 13% year over year to $1.02 and operating profit dropped 12%, signaling soft demand and limited earnings leverage. Management also highlighted rising electronic component costs and tightening availability across capacitors, bare circuit boards, and memory chips, a broad industry headwind tied to AI and datacenter demand that could pressure margins and fulfillment across ORION Cellular, ultrasonic meters, and Beyond the Meter products. Even with gross margin at 40.8% and FCF conversion of 74%, the combination of a prolonged "show me" window, elevated short interest, and exposure to municipal spending, tariffs, and competitive AMI pressure supports a bearish outlook.

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