Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS Stake Raised by Daiwa Securities Group Inc.

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 31.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 21,930 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,200 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $3,176,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 16,007 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,318,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 377 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.6% in the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 4,599 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $638,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Intrust Bank NA raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 2,559 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $371,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norden Group LLC raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 2,986 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $432,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

NYSE WMS opened at $135.53 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $141.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.38. The company has a current ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market cap of $10.39 billion, a PE ratio of 24.91, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.29. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $109.63 and a 1 year high of $179.32.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $676.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $651.92 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 26.63% and a net margin of 13.98%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.03 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.55 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This is a boost from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMS has been the topic of several research reports. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Stephens upgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $175.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays cut their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $198.00 to $181.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $215.00 to $205.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $198.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Advanced Drainage Systems has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.29.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

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.