Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Shares Purchased by Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc.

Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 553.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,759 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 37,908 shares during the period. Advanced Drainage Systems comprises 3.2% of Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest position. Prentiss Smith & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $4,863,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $74,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 167.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 812 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 884 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 1,298.6% in the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $118,000 after purchasing an additional 948 shares during the period. 89.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on WMS shares. Barclays raised their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $146.00 to $141.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp dropped their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $155.00 to $146.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $139.88.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

NYSE WMS opened at $113.58 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $8.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $112.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.46. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 1-year low of $93.92 and a 1-year high of $179.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 3.33 and a quick ratio of 2.10.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 15th. The construction company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.09 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $615.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $653.22 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.50% and a return on equity of 32.33%. The business’s revenue was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This is an increase from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.50%.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company Profile

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc designs, manufactures, and markets thermoplastic corrugated pipes and related water management products in North America and internationally. The company operates through Pipe, International, Infiltrator, and Allied Products & Other segments. It offers single, double, and triple wall corrugated polypropylene and polyethylene pipes; plastic leachfield chambers and systems; EZflow synthetic aggregate bundles; wastewater purification through mechanical aeration wastewater for residential and commercial systems; septic tanks and accessories; combined treatment and dispersal systems, including advanced enviro-septic and advanced treatment leachfield systems; and allied products, including storm retention/detention and septic chambers, polyvinyl chloride drainage structures, fittings, and water quality filters and separators.