AIA Group Ltd Raises Position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

AIA Group Ltd lifted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 42,596 shares of the construction company’s stock after buying an additional 4,660 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $6,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMS. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 319.4% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 151 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. West Oak Capital LLC lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 133.3% during the 2nd quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 175 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 1,472.7% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 173 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 65.2% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 451 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $200.00 to $187.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $192.00 price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $202.00 to $194.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. One equities research 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 currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $190.14.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 2.8 %

Shares of WMS stock opened at $158.89 on Friday. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.31 and a 1 year high of $184.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $152.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $159.90. The company has a market cap of $12.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.14, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 2.89 and a quick ratio of 1.90.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.13%.

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.