Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Shares Acquired by Prudential PLC

Prudential PLC lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,081 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMS. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 24.8% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 63,780 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $11,006,000 after buying an additional 12,655 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 10.3% in the first quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 121,851 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $21,178,000 after purchasing an additional 11,423 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 1st quarter valued at $525,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 16.3% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 139,677 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $24,059,000 after purchasing an additional 19,626 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,265,169 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,251,353,000 after purchasing an additional 395,099 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on WMS shares. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $192.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays lowered their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $202.00 to $194.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $182.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.14.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Up 2.2 %

Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $147.58 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $102.32 and a twelve month high of $184.27. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $156.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $163.06.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $815.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $828.00 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 43.60% and a net margin of 17.09%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.43%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.94%.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

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.