MILWAUKEE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Badger Meter, Inc. (NYSE: BMI) today announced it has signed a stock purchase agreement to acquire National Meter and Automation, Inc. (National Meter), based in Denver, Col. The purchase is estimated to add approximately $15 million of incremental revenues to Badger Meter, after eliminating what would be intercompany sales. National Meter is a major distributor of Badger Meter products for the municipal water utility market, serving customers in Colorado, California, Nevada, Arizona and southern Wyoming.
“National Meter is one of our leading distributors and we have developed an excellent and mutually-rewarding relationship since the company was formed in 2004. We sell a significant amount of our products through distributors, who have close relationships with our customers and provide important sales, technical and operational support at a local level. The addition of National Meter will not only further integrate Badger Meter into this key sales channel, but also will benefit our other distributor relationships and our customers,” said Richard A. Meeusen, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Badger Meter.
Meeusen said National Meter will become a regional distribution center for Badger Meter. In addition to its primary product line of water meters and meter reading systems, National Meter also provides services including meter testing, leak detection, water audits, meter and meter reading system installation and meter reading. National Meter will continue to be led by its founders Noel Frakes and Frank Milliron. “We are pleased to welcome National Meter’s leadership team and employees to Badger Meter,” said Meeusen.
The acquisition is expected to close on October 1, 2014.
About Badger Meter
As an innovator in flow measurement and control products, Badger Meter serves water utilities, municipalities, and commercial and industrial customers worldwide. Measuring water, oil, chemicals, and other fluids, Badger Meter products are known for accuracy, long-lasting durability and for providing valuable and timely measurement data. For more information, visit www.badgermeter.com.
Certain statements contained in this news release, as well as other information provided from time to time by Badger Meter, Inc. (the “Company”) or its employees, may contain forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “think,” “should,” “could” and “objective” or similar expressions are intended to identify forward looking statements. All such forward looking statements are based on the Company’s then current views and assumptions and involve risks and uncertainties. Some risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in forward looking statements include those described in Item 1A of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013 that include, among other things:
- the continued shift in the Company’s business from lower cost, manually read meters toward more expensive, value-added automatic meter reading (AMR) systems, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) systems and advanced metering analytics (AMA) systems that offer more comprehensive solutions to customers’ metering needs;
- the success or failure of newer Company products;
- changes in competitive pricing and bids in both the domestic and foreign marketplaces, and particularly in continued intense price competition on government bid contracts for lower cost, manually read meters;
- the actions (or lack thereof) of the Company’s competitors;
- changes in the Company’s relationships with its alliance partners, primarily its alliance partners that provide radio solutions, and particularly those that sell products that do or may compete with the Company’s products;
- changes in the general health of the United States and foreign economies, including to some extent such things as the length and severity of global economic downturns, the ability of municipal water utility customers to authorize and finance purchases of the Company’s products, the Company’s ability to obtain financing, housing starts in the United States, and overall industrial activity;
- unusual weather and other natural phenomena, including related economic and other ancillary effects of any such events;
- the timing and impact of government programs to stimulate national and global economies, as well as the impact of government budget cuts or partial shutdowns of governmental operations;
- changes in the cost and/or availability of needed raw materials and parts, such as volatility in the cost of brass castings as a result of fluctuations in commodity prices, particularly for copper and scrap metal at the supplier level, foreign-sourced electronic components as a result of currency exchange fluctuations and/or lead times, and plastic resin as a result of changes in petroleum and natural gas prices;
- the Company’s expanded role as a prime contractor for providing complete connectivity systems to governmental entities, which brings with it added risks, including but not limited to, the Company’s responsibility for subcontractor performance, additional costs and expenses if the Company and its subcontractors fail to meet the timetable agreed to with the governmental entity, and the Company’s expanded warranty and performance obligations;
- the Company’s ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses or products;
- changes in foreign economic conditions, particularly currency fluctuations in the United States dollar, the Euro and the Mexican peso;
- the inability to develop technologically advanced products;
- the failure of the Company’s technology products to operate as intended;
- the inability to protect the Company’s proprietary rights to its software and related products;
- the loss of certain single-source suppliers;
- changes in laws and regulations, particularly laws dealing with the use of lead (which can be used in the manufacture of certain meters incorporating brass housings) and the United States Federal Communications Commission rules affecting the use and/or licensing of radio frequencies necessary for radio products; and
- the ability to complete the proposed National Meter acquisition on anticipated terms and timetable and the Company’s ability to integrate successfully after the transaction and achieve anticipated benefits from such transaction
All of these factors are beyond the Company's control to varying degrees. Shareholders, potential investors and other readers are urged to consider these factors carefully in evaluating the forward looking statements contained in this news release and are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward looking statements. The forward looking statements made in this document are made only as of the date of this document and the Company assumes no obligation, and disclaims any obligation, to update any such forward looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
Badger Meter company news is available 24 hours a day, on-line at: http://www.badgermeter.com.
