Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $139.88.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WMS. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $134.00 price objective for the company. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $146.00 to $141.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 16th.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

Advanced Drainage Systems stock traded up $1.12 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $114.12. 1,822,509 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 620,913. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 3.33 and a quick ratio of 2.10. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $112.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $115.04. The company has a market capitalization of $8.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.81, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.25. Advanced Drainage Systems has a 12-month low of $93.92 and a 12-month high of $179.57.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The construction company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.09 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $615.76 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $653.22 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 32.33% and a net margin of 15.50%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. Analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. This is an increase from Advanced Drainage Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. Advanced Drainage Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.50%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advanced Drainage Systems

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 76.2% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 266 shares of the construction company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 1st quarter worth about $66,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 4th quarter worth about $74,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 110.7% in the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 670 shares of the construction company's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company 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.