Thematics Asset Management Trims Stock Position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

Thematics Asset Management reduced its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 145,500 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 5,000 shares during the quarter. Thematics Asset Management owned 0.19% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $20,181,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 10.9% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,416,942 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $335,230,000 after purchasing an additional 238,179 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 6.5% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,472,176 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $204,191,000 after buying an additional 90,106 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 234.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,188,906 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $164,901,000 after buying an additional 832,929 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,138,378 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $157,889,000 after acquiring an additional 16,118 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 34.9% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 933,851 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $129,525,000 after acquiring an additional 241,500 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMS has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group set a $215.00 price target on Advanced Drainage Systems and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $205.00 target price on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Barclays upped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $187.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $176.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $137.24 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.27. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.92 and a 12-month high of $179.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 4.12 and a quick ratio of 3.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $159.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $149.78.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.16. The business 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 company’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.09 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. 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.