Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Holdings Lifted by Shell Asset Management Co.

Shell Asset Management Co. boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 24.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,500 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,075 shares during the quarter. Shell Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $947,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,265,169 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,251,353,000 after buying an additional 395,099 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,299,489 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $182,737,000 after purchasing an additional 178,720 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 659,483 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $92,750,000 after purchasing an additional 289,925 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 633,392 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $89,086,000 after buying an additional 15,690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the fourth quarter worth about $88,640,000. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $189.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Northcoast Research started coverage on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $181.88.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $174.48 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $167.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $160.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 2.96 and a quick ratio of 1.90. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $102.32 and a 52-week high of $184.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.55.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The construction company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $653.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.99 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 46.93% and a net margin of 17.74%. The business’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 7.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st were given a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. This is a positive change from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.94%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.58, for a total value of $1,725,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,225 shares in the company, valued at $1,246,890.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, EVP Robert M. Klein sold 3,059 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $175.95, for a total transaction of $538,231.05. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 102,070 shares in the company, valued at $17,959,216.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.58, for a total value of $1,725,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,225 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,246,890.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 176,004 shares of company stock valued at $30,547,285. Company insiders own 2.05% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Profile

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.