Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Buys 92,000 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) by 278.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 125,000 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 92,000 shares during the period. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned 0.16% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $14,450,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 31.8% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 2,011 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $316,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $230,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 73,203 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $8,554,000 after purchasing an additional 4,221 shares during the last quarter. Northcape Capital Pty Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 32.1% during the 4th quarter. Northcape Capital Pty Ltd now owns 16,509 shares of the construction company's stock worth $1,908,000 after buying an additional 4,016 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 50.4% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 96,764 shares of the construction company's stock worth $11,186,000 after buying an additional 32,418 shares during the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $155.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Friday, February 7th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $135.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $153.78.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

NYSE WMS traded up $0.33 during trading on Thursday, hitting $113.82. 544,484 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 577,249. The business has a 50 day moving average of $108.43 and a 200-day moving average of $122.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 3.21. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.92 and a 12-month high of $184.27.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The construction company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.25). Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.90% and a return on equity of 35.79%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Advanced Drainage Systems's payout ratio is presently 10.70%.

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.