New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 19,117 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

New York State Common Retirement Fund cut its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) by 13.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 122,247 shares of the construction company's stock after selling 19,117 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.16% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $17,193,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 13.3% in the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,445,326 shares of the construction company's stock worth $164,521,000 after purchasing an additional 169,517 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 428.8% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 22,449 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $3,157,000 after buying an additional 18,204 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 1.0% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,878,726 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $783,005,000 after buying an additional 65,038 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 82.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,990 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,968,000 after buying an additional 6,343 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 113.9% during the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 7,316 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $833,000 after purchasing an additional 3,896 shares during the period. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Advanced Drainage Systems

In other news, 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 $11,532,087. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, 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 $11,532,087. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.52, for a total transaction of $1,635,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,199,344. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.79% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $159.13.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

Shares of WMS traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $162.82. 285,284 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 460,345. The stock's fifty day moving average is $164.58 and its 200 day moving average is $141.03. The stock has a market cap of $12.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 3.03. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.25 and a 1-year high of $176.31.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Advanced Drainage Systems's payout ratio is 8.90%.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

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.