Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 32,418 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 50.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 96,764 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 32,418 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.12% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $11,186,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northcape Capital Pty Ltd grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 32.1% during the fourth quarter. Northcape Capital Pty Ltd now owns 16,509 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,908,000 after purchasing an additional 4,016 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 73,203 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $8,554,000 after acquiring an additional 4,221 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems in the 4th quarter worth approximately $230,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,011 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.2% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,186,878 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $186,578,000 after purchasing an additional 59,158 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of WMS opened at $125.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 3.19 and a quick ratio of 2.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.01, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a 50-day moving average of $124.18 and a 200 day moving average of $144.40. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $110.75 and a 1-year high of $184.27.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $782.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $819.41 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 16.89% and a return on equity of 40.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.71 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.12 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is currently 10.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WMS shares. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $135.00 price objective (down from $170.00) on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $192.00 to $184.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $166.88.

Advanced Drainage Systems Profile

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.