Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 1,081,179 Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

Key Points

• Norges Bank disclosed a new fourth-quarter stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, buying 1,081,179 shares valued at about $156.6 million and owning 1.39% of the company. Institutional ownership remains high at 89.83%.
• Advanced Drainage Systems reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.07 versus estimates of $0.95 and revenue of $676.76 million, up 9.9% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.20 per share from $0.18, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $187.

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,081,179 shares of the construction company's stock, valued at approximately $156,587,000. Norges Bank owned 1.39% of Advanced Drainage Systems at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WMS. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 234.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,188,906 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $164,901,000 after purchasing an additional 832,929 shares during the period. Interval Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 98.0% during the third quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 968,534 shares of the construction company's stock worth $134,336,000 after acquiring an additional 479,413 shares in the last quarter. SG Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the third quarter worth $45,591,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 586.9% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 285,810 shares of the construction company's stock worth $39,642,000 after acquiring an additional 244,202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 34.9% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 933,851 shares of the construction company's stock worth $129,525,000 after acquiring an additional 241,500 shares in the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 2.0%

NYSE WMS opened at $132.92 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $142.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $149.69. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.63 and a twelve month high of $179.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market capitalization of $10.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.43, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.29.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The construction company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.12. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 26.63% and a net margin of 13.98%.The business had revenue of $676.76 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $651.92 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Advanced Drainage Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Advanced Drainage Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 14.71%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on WMS shares. Stephens upgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $175.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $198.00 to $185.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Robert W. Baird set a $205.00 target price on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, February 6th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $215.00 to $205.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $195.00 to $190.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $187.00.

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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