Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 5,673 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 3.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 175,164 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,673 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $24,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WMS. Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 32.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 28,122 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,901,000 after purchasing an additional 6,960 shares during the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at $24,314,000. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 345.7% in the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 42,898 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $5,950,000 after buying an additional 33,274 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems in the third quarter worth $1,321,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 29.7% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 19,982 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,772,000 after buying an additional 4,574 shares during the period. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on WMS. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group set a $215.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $176.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $187.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

WMS stock opened at $138.84 on Friday. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $93.92 and a twelve month high of $179.32. The firm has a market cap of $10.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.10, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.27. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $160.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $149.84. The company has a quick ratio of 3.08, a current ratio of 4.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $693.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $686.37 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.75% and a return on equity of 27.72%. The business’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is 11.98%.

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.