Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Stock Position Raised by Louisiana State Employees Retirement System

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 1.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,800 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $2,151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 76.2% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 266 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 4th quarter valued at about $74,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 167.1% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 812 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 1,298.6% in the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 948 shares in the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

WMS opened at $116.80 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 3.33. The company has a market cap of $9.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $115.67 and a 200-day moving average of $114.54. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $93.92 and a 52-week high of $179.57.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The construction company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by ($0.06). Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.50%. The company had revenue of $615.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $653.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a positive change from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is currently 12.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $155.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.88.

Advanced Drainage Systems Profile

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets thermoplastic corrugated pipes and related water management products in North America and internationally. The company operates through Pipe, International, Infiltrator, and Allied Products & Other segments. It offers single, double, and triple wall corrugated polypropylene and polyethylene pipes; plastic leachfield chambers and systems; EZflow synthetic aggregate bundles; wastewater purification through mechanical aeration wastewater for residential and commercial systems; septic tanks and accessories; combined treatment and dispersal systems, including advanced enviro-septic and advanced treatment leachfield systems; and allied products, including storm retention/detention and septic chambers, polyvinyl chloride drainage structures, fittings, and water quality filters and separators.