Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) have received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $178.57.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $192.00 to $184.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $174.00 to $161.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $194.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday.

Institutional Trading of Advanced Drainage Systems

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WMS. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 217.0% in the 3rd quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 79,646 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $12,517,000 after buying an additional 54,518 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.8% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,411 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 43.0% in the third quarter. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. now owns 67,007 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $10,531,000 after acquiring an additional 20,149 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.6% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 21,711 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,412,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,271 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of WMS opened at $135.68 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $10.52 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.53. Advanced Drainage Systems has a 1 year low of $112.11 and a 1 year high of $184.27. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $151.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $159.57.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The construction company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $782.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $819.41 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 17.09% and a return on equity of 43.60%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.47%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.19%.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

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.