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Badger Meter's Q3 Earnings & Sales Surpass Estimates, Rise Y/Y

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Key Takeaways

  • {\"0\":\"Badger Meter\'s Q3 EPS of $1.19 beat estimates and rose from $1.08 a year earlier.\",\"1\":\"Quarterly sales climbed 13.1% to $235.7M, fueled by robust utility water demand.\",\"2\":\"Gross margin increased to 40.7%, prompting BMI to lift its normalized range to 39-42%.\"}

Badger Meter, Inc. (BMI - Free Report) reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.19 for third-quarter 2025, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7.2%. Also, the bottom line compared favorably with the year-ago quarter’s EPS of $1.08.

Quarterly net sales were $235.7 million, up 13.1% from $208.4 million in the year-ago quarter, driven by higher utility water sales. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at $229.4 million.

Management highlighted that although the company navigates ongoing macroeconomic, trade and policy challenges, demand for its industry-leading cellular AMI and BlueEdge smart water management solutions remains robust. The company is confident that the long-term trends driving digital water technology adoption among utilities and commercial and industrial customers will sustain its revenue growth.

The company is well-positioned to invest in innovation and pursue strategic, value-driven acquisitions with another quarter of strong free cash flow. It remains on track to realize the expected sales and cost synergies from the SmartCover acquisition.

However, BMI’s shares slid 5.4% and closed trading at $177.35 on Tuesday. In the past year, shares have lost 10.9% against the Zacks Instruments-Control industry’s growth of 8.1%.

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Segmental Performance

In the quarter under review, utility water sales rose 14% year over year. Even excluding SmartCover, utility water sales were up 8%. The growth was driven by higher ultrasonic meter volumes, increased BEACON Software-as-a-Service sales and stronger water quality product demand.

Flow instrumentation sales grew 4% year over year, as strength in water-related markets offset softer demand in deemphasized non-water applications.

Other Details

In the third quarter, gross profit was $95.8 million, up from $83.9 million in the prior-year quarter. Gross margin was 40.7%, up 50 basis points (bps) year over year.

Gross margin continued to benefit from ongoing structural mix improvements, while implemented price increases helped offset some tariff-related cost pressures during the quarter. Although the trade environment remains dynamic, it has raised its historical gross margin range of 38%–40% to a new normalized range of 39%–42%.

Badger Meter, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Badger Meter, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Badger Meter, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Badger Meter, Inc. Quote

Operating earnings jumped 13% year over year to $46.1 million, while operating margin declined 10 bps to 19.6% from 19.5%.

Selling, engineering and administration (SEA) expenses rose 11.8% year over year to $49.8 million. This increase was mainly driven by the addition of SmartCover, which included $1.6 million in intangible asset amortization. Base SEA expenses rose 3% year over year, reflecting a $1.8 million benefit from a deferred compensation plan tied to the stock price change during the quarter. Overall, SEA as a percentage of sales rose slightly to 21.1% from 20.8% in the prior-year quarter.

Cash Flow & Liquidity

In the third quarter of 2025, Badger Meter generated $51.3 million of net cash from operating activities compared with $45.1 million a year ago.

As of Sept. 30, 2025, the company had $201.7 million of cash and cash equivalents and $153.4 million of total current liabilities compared with the respective figures of $165.2 million and $138.7 million as of June 30, 2025.

Outlook

The company remains confident in its long-term growth prospects, supported by a robust opportunity pipeline and strong demand for its smart water management solutions. It expects to achieve an average high single-digit top-line growth rate over the next five years, driven by continued technology adoption and strategic pricing initiatives that help offset tariff impacts.

With a raised normalized gross margin range of 39–42% and consistent free cash flow generation, the company is well-positioned to invest in innovation and pursue disciplined, value-creating acquisitions such as SmartCover. Management remains focused on executing its strategic priorities while staying agile amid evolving macroeconomic, trade and supply chain conditions.

BMI’s Zacks Rank

Badger Meter currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Recent Performance of Other Companies

BlackBerry Limited (BB - Free Report) reported second-quarter fiscal 2026 non-GAAP EPS of 4 cents. The figure beat the company’s estimate of breakeven to EPS of 1 cent. In the year-ago quarter, it reported a non-GAAP EPS of breakeven. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at 1 cent.

Quarterly total revenues of $129.6 million exceeded its guidance ($115-$125 million) and were up 3% year over year. Management reported that the Secure Communications division outperformed expectations on both top and bottom line, while achieving improvements across its key metrics.

In the past, shares of BB have gained 87.8%.

America Movil, S.A.B. de C.V. (AMX - Free Report) reported net income per ADR of 40 cents for third-quarter 2025 compared with 11 cents reported in the prior-year quarter. The earnings figure surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 36 cents.

Net income in the quarter was Mex$22,700 million or Mex$0.38 per share against a net loss of Mex$6,427 million or Mex$0.10 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company's comprehensive financing cost was Mex$12,899 million, down 54.5% from the year-ago quarter’s Mex$28,323 million.

In the past, shares of AMX have soared 33.8%

Manhattan Associates Inc. (MANH - Free Report) posted third-quarter 2025 adjusted earnings of $1.36 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.18. This compares to earnings of $1.35 per share a year ago. Manhattan Associates generated revenues of $275.8 million, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.65%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $266.7 million.  

Shares of MANH have plunged 24.6% in the past year.

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