JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reduces Holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 1.3% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 249,196 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 3,359 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $34,565,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 32.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 28,122 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,901,000 after buying an additional 6,960 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the third quarter worth $24,314,000. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 345.7% during the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 42,898 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $5,950,000 after acquiring an additional 33,274 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the third quarter valued at $1,321,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 29.7% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 19,982 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,772,000 after purchasing an additional 4,574 shares during the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of WMS stock opened at $171.10 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 4.12, a quick ratio of 3.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.92 and a 12-month high of $179.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $159.21 and its 200 day moving average is $149.14.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.16. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 27.72% and a net margin of 15.75%.The firm had revenue of $693.35 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $686.37 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.09 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is currently 11.98%.

Insider Activity at Advanced Drainage Systems

In other news, Director Robert M. Eversole sold 10,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.82, for a total value of $1,615,154.58. Following the transaction, the director owned 50,076 shares in the company, valued at $7,652,614.32. This represents a 17.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on WMS. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $176.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Robert W. Baird set a $205.00 price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group set a $215.00 target price on Advanced Drainage Systems and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.00.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company Profile

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc (NYSE: WMS) is a leading manufacturer and supplier of water management solutions in North America. Headquartered in Hilliard, Ohio, the company specializes in the design, production and distribution of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) drainage pipe and related products. Its core business addresses stormwater management, on-site septic systems and erosion control for residential, commercial and infrastructure projects.

The company’s product portfolio includes corrugated plastic pipe, tubing, fittings, geocells, geogrids and stormwater structures such as inlets, manholes and detention/retention systems.