Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC Has $19.12 Million Stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

Key Points

• Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 8.5% to 137,852 shares, valued at about $19.12 million (roughly 0.18% of the company) at the end of the quarter.
• Several brokerages raised price targets (including RBC, Oppenheimer and UBS), leaving the stock with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186, with eight analysts issuing Buy ratings and one Hold.
• Advanced Drainage posted a quarterly earnings beat (EPS $1.27 vs. $1.11 expected; revenue $693.35M vs. $686.37M) and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.18 (annualized $0.72, ~0.5% yield; ex-dividend March 2).

Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 137,852 shares of the construction company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,850 shares during the quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $19,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 32.9% in the 3rd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 28,122 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,960 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $24,314,000. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 345.7% in the 3rd quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 42,898 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,950,000 after buying an additional 33,274 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,321,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 29.7% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 19,982 shares of the construction company's stock worth $2,772,000 after acquiring an additional 4,574 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.83% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on WMS. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $176.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Robert W. Baird set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group set a $215.00 target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.00.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 7.6%

WMS stock opened at $148.85 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $160.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 4.12 and a quick ratio of 3.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.27. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $93.92 and a fifty-two week high of $179.32.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.16. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.75% and a return on equity of 27.72%. The business had revenue of $693.35 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $686.37 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.09 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. Advanced Drainage Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.98%.

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.

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