Mueller (NYSE:MWA) is the largest full-line supplier of flow control products used in distribution systems for municipal potable water and natural gas, and is ISO certified. Yawn! Whitney Tilson explains in the following Financial Times article why this boring company is such a great investment.
My current investment in Mueller came from a spin-off from Walter Industries (WLT). I considered the company to be the ultimate sum-of-parts investment. In other words, the sum of the parts of Walter were worth more than what the market was pricing the stock. The stock price of Mueller has dropped quite a bit since the spin-off so a great value play still exists as Tilson explains below.
Mueller is the leading North American provider of water infrastructure and flow control products – things such as fire hydrants, valves, pipes, fittings and couplings. While this is no doubt a mundane business, it is also an excellent one.
Mueller has a strong competitive position, with one of the largest installed bases in the US and 74 per cent of sales coming from products with number one or two market positions.
Adjusted for one-time charges, its operating margin was 14 per cent in its latest fiscal year and revenue, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation and operating income grew 11 per cent, 30 per cent and 42 per cent, respectively. Future growth prospects are excellent, as the crumbling US water infrastructure – the American Society of Civil Engineers gave US drinking-water and wastewater infrastructure a grade of “D-” in 2005 – will require billions of dollars of new investment during the next few decades.
So what is Mueller worth? Using three different valuation methodologies – private market value, peer public company multiples and a sum-of-the-parts analysis, we think Mueller shares are worth in the mid-$20s, versus under $15 today. We think that is plenty cheap for a stable, high-quality business and have been buying aggressively at today’s prices.
Check out this John Bethel post for an excellent analysis on both WLT and MWA.
MWA 1-yr chart:
