JB Capital LLC Takes Position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

JB Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,805 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $254,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 47.8% in the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 495 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the third quarter valued at approximately $82,000. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of WMS traded down $1.88 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $168.52. 129,191 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 481,770. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.76 and a 52-week high of $176.31. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $157.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.40. The firm has a market cap of $13.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 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 (NYSE:WMS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The construction company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $662.37 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $632.69 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.99 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 13,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,199,344. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 13,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,199,344. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Ross M. Jones sold 762,895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $11,532,087. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on WMS. Barclays increased their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 13th. StockNews.com upgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 16th. Stephens increased their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $155.13.

Advanced Drainage Systems 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.