40,000 Shares in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS Bought by Archon Partners LLC

Archon Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 40,000 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,793,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WMS. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth $156,587,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 234.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,188,906 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $164,901,000 after acquiring an additional 832,929 shares during the period. Amundi grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 80.9% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,279,576 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $185,324,000 after acquiring an additional 572,193 shares during the period. Interval Partners LP boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 98.0% during the third quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 968,534 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $134,336,000 after buying an additional 479,413 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 875.8% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 458,910 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $66,464,000 after buying an additional 411,883 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $198.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $168.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.75.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

Shares of WMS opened at $138.95 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $10.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.54, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a 50-day moving average of $141.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $148.84. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $109.63 and a 12-month high of $179.32.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The construction company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $676.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $651.92 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 13.98% and a return on equity of 26.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This is an increase from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.71%.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc (NYSE: WMS) is a leading manufacturer and supplier of water management solutions in North America. Headquartered in Hilliard, Ohio, the company specializes in the design, production and distribution of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) drainage pipe and related products. Its core business addresses stormwater management, on-site septic systems and erosion control for residential, commercial and infrastructure projects.

The company’s product portfolio includes corrugated plastic pipe, tubing, fittings, geocells, geogrids and stormwater structures such as inlets, manholes and detention/retention systems.