First Trust Advisors LP Boosts Position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 10.9%, acquiring 238,179 shares to own 2,416,942 shares (about 3.11% of the company) worth $335.23 million, while institutional investors now hold roughly 89.83% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment is largely positive—eight Buy ratings and one Hold give a consensus target of $186, with several firms recently raising targets (UBS $215, RBC $205, Oppenheimer $200).
• Advanced Drainage beat the most recent quarter expectations (EPS $1.27 vs. $1.11 est.; revenue $693.35M vs. $686.37M), trades around $146.22 with a $11.39B market cap, and pays a $0.18 quarterly dividend (0.5% yield).

First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,416,942 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 238,179 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 3.11% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $335,230,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.8% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 3,043,909 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $348,709,000 after acquiring an additional 139,495 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,472,176 shares of the construction company's stock worth $204,191,000 after purchasing an additional 90,106 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,138,378 shares of the construction company's stock worth $157,889,000 after purchasing an additional 16,118 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 880,373 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $101,120,000 after purchasing an additional 6,154 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at $90,989,000. 89.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WMS shares. UBS Group set a $215.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective 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. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $176.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $186.00.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $146.22 on Friday. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $93.92 and a fifty-two week high of $179.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 3.08 and a current ratio of 4.12. The stock has a market cap of $11.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.27. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $160.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $149.75.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) last announced its 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. The company had revenue of $693.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $686.37 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.75% and a return on equity of 27.72%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.09 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. Advanced Drainage Systems's dividend payout ratio is presently 11.98%.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company Profile

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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