Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $160.85 and last traded at $157.3980, with a volume of 44601 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $157.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $181.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $183.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $176.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Thursday, January 15th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $159.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.22.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Down 0.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 3.48 and a quick ratio of 2.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.63, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.33. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $150.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $140.45.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The construction company reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $850.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $802.49 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 28.85% and a net margin of 15.35%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 1st. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.29%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Thomas J. Sr. Waun sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 14,970 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,245,500. This trade represents a 6.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Tim A. Makowski sold 4,901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.21, for a total value of $731,278.21. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,467 shares in the company, valued at $368,101.07. The trade was a 66.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 97,772 shares of company stock worth $14,605,539 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.63% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advanced Drainage Systems

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WMS. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 177.4% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 430 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 77.7% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,371 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $387,000 after buying an additional 1,474 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 11,036.2% in the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 5,234 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $601,000 after acquiring an additional 5,187 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems in the second quarter worth approximately $336,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 38.5% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,125 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company 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.