Chesapeake Capital Corp IL Makes New Investment in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Chesapeake Capital Corp IL acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 7,058 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the third quarter worth $25,000. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth $60,000. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advanced Drainage Systems

In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, Director Ross M. Jones sold 762,895 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total transaction of $124,351,885.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 70,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,532,087. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.52, for a total value of $1,635,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,199,344. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Ross M. Jones sold 762,895 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total value of $124,351,885.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 70,749 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,532,087. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WMS. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Northcoast Research began coverage on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.88.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

WMS stock traded down $0.64 during trading on Friday, hitting $174.30. 443,477 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 456,101. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 2.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.68 and a 52 week high of $184.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $167.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $149.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.51.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 16th. The construction company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.28. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 17.74% and a return on equity of 46.93%. The firm had revenue of $653.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.99 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This is a positive change from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.70%.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets thermoplastic corrugated pipes and related water management products, and drainage solutions for use in the construction and agriculture marketplaces in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through Pipe, International, Infiltrator, and Allied Products & Other segments.