133,989 Shares in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS Bought by OP Asset Management Ltd

OP Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 133,989 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,374,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMS. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew 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. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at about $36,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 150.8% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 301 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WMS shares. Zacks Research downgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Stephens upgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $190.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $215.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Advanced Drainage Systems presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.75.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $148.93 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $141.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $148.59. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $109.63 and a one year high of $179.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 2.42 and a quick ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.38, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.29.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The construction company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.12. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 26.63% and a net margin of 13.98%.The business had revenue of $676.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $651.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.55 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 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.71%.

Advanced Drainage Systems Profile

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.