Badger Meter (NYSE: BMI) reported earnings on July 26. Here are the numbers you need to know.

The 10-second takeaway
 For the quarter ended June 30 (Q2), Badger Meter beat expectations on revenues and missed estimates on earnings per share.

Compared to the prior-year quarter, revenue grew. GAAP earnings per share dropped significantly.

Margins shrank across the board.

Revenue details
 Badger Meter chalked up revenue of $88.3 million. The four analysts polled by S&P Capital IQ predicted revenue of $86.2 million on the same basis. GAAP reported sales were 7.8% higher than the prior-year quarter's $82.0 million.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures are normalized by S&P Capital IQ and may vary to maintain comparability with normalized estimates.

EPS details
 EPS came in at $0.44. The three earnings estimates compiled by S&P Capital IQ forecast $0.49 per share. GAAP EPS of $0.44 for Q2 were 15% lower than the prior-year quarter's $0.52 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures are normalized by S&P Capital IQ and may vary to maintain comparability with normalized estimates.

Margin details
 For the quarter, gross margin was 33.8%, 300 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 11.6%, 230 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 7.1%, 200 basis points worse than the prior-year quarter. (Margins calculated in GAAP terms.)

Looking ahead
 Next quarter's average estimate for revenue is $91.2 million. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $0.61.

Next year's average estimate for revenue is $331.0 million. The average EPS estimate is $1.73.

Investor sentiment
 The stock has a three-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 200 members out of 217 rating the stock outperform, and 17 members rating it underperform. Among 44 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 36 give Badger Meter a green thumbs-up, and eight give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Badger Meter is hold, with an average price target of $46.25.

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