Northcoast Research Begins Coverage on Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS)

Northcoast Research initiated coverage on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $190.00 price objective on the construction company's stock.

WMS has been the subject of a number of other reports. KeyCorp upped their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $162.56.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of WMS traded up $0.07 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $168.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 336,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 455,033. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Advanced Drainage Systems has a 1-year low of $84.71 and a 1-year high of $176.31. The company has a 50 day moving average of $164.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $143.11. The firm has a market cap of $13.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.51.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The construction company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.44. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 49.79% and a net margin of 17.65%. The company had revenue of $662.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $632.69 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems will post 6.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.33%. Advanced Drainage Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ross M. Jones sold 762,895 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total value of $124,351,885.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 70,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,532,087. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.52, for a total value of $1,635,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 13,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,199,344. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ross M. Jones sold 762,895 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total transaction of $124,351,885.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 70,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,532,087. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.79% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Advanced Drainage Systems

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 29.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 273 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 490 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.5% in the first quarter. Argent Capital Management LLC now owns 20,504 shares of the construction company's stock worth $3,532,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 32,367 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,552,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 28,848 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,057,000 after acquiring an additional 143 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.83% of the company's stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company Profile

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets thermoplastic corrugated pipes and related water management products, and drainage solutions for use in the construction and agriculture marketplaces in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. The company operates through Pipe, International, Infiltrator, and Allied Products & Other segments.