Milwaukee-based Badger Meter Inc. reported second quarter net earnings of $7.4 million, down from $7.8 million a year ago.
The company’s earnings per share remained flat at 52 cents.
Badger Meter’s quarterly net sales grew to $82.0 million from $75.1 million a year earlier.
Richard Meeusen, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Badger Meter said the increase in second quarter sales was due primarily to the acquisition of Racine Federated Inc. on Jan. 31, partially offset by lower sales of Orion radio transmitters for natural gas meters as a result of the completion of a large contract in 2011.
Excluding those factors, sales of the company’s utility, industrial and specialty products were comparable to the second quarter of last year, Meeusen said.
“While our overall sales levels are similar to what they have been in previous second quarters, we are seeing a lingering uncertainty in the industry about municipal financing capabilities. Housing starts also remain at record lows. We believe these factors are slowing the growth of the industry over the short term. Long term, we continue to believe the fundamentals of water scarcity and our customers need for information to better manage their operations provide good growth opportunities for the industry and for Badger Meter,” Meeusen said.
