Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $159.13.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. KeyCorp raised their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com lowered Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Advanced Drainage Systems

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 16,800 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,894,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. New England Research & Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 1st quarter worth $525,000. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 1st quarter worth $392,000. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 1st quarter worth $371,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 1st quarter worth $73,000. 89.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Down 0.1 %

Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $156.73 on Friday. Advanced Drainage Systems has a 1-year low of $80.41 and a 1-year high of $176.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 3.03 and a quick ratio of 2.04. The stock has a market cap of $12.17 billion, a PE ratio of 24.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $164.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.60.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The construction company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.44. The company had revenue of $662.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $632.69 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 49.79% and a net margin of 17.65%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.36%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is 8.90%.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company Profile

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.