First Trust Advisors LP Sells 378,619 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

First Trust Advisors LP lowered its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 15.6% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,044,057 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 378,619 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $280,301,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WMS. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 352.0% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 226 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 78.1% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 244 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $141.65 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.35. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.85 and a 1 year high of $179.32. The firm has a market cap of $10.86 billion, a PE ratio of 26.04, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $142.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.83.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Thursday, June 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $175.00 price target on the stock. Stephens raised Advanced Drainage Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Zacks Research lowered Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price 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. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.00.

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.