Natixis Advisors L.P. Boosts Stock Position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS - Free Report) by 9.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 174,580 shares of the construction company's stock after buying an additional 15,557 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned about 0.22% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $24,552,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 184.5% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the construction company's stock worth $791,000 after buying an additional 4,505 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 15,395 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $1,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,274 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.8% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 35,806 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $4,076,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 3.1% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 692,211 shares of the construction company's stock worth $78,794,000 after purchasing an additional 20,947 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 94.9% in the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 43,966 shares of the construction company's stock worth $5,005,000 after purchasing an additional 21,413 shares in the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on WMS shares. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a 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. Oppenheimer raised their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their target price 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $159.13.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Up 1.8 %

NYSE:WMS traded up $2.95 on Friday, reaching $164.89. 347,171 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 380,892. The company has a current ratio of 3.03, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market capitalization of $12.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.51. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $82.00 and a 12 month high of $176.31. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $164.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.08.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.