Brokerages Set Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Target Price at $188.70

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the ten analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $188.70.

Several research firms recently issued reports on WMS. Stephens raised shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $190.00 to $175.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $175.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson started coverage on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $181.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:WMS opened at $128.12 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $142.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.66 billion, a PE ratio of 22.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.28. Advanced Drainage Systems has a 12 month low of $126.39 and a 12 month high of $179.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 2.12 and a quick ratio of 1.18.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The construction company reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $1 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $991.39 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 28.28% and a net margin of 14.00%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.95 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems will post 6.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.82%.

Institutional Trading of Advanced Drainage Systems

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WMS. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 15,172.0% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 13,246,953 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $2,079,242,000 after acquiring an additional 13,160,213 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,172,482,000. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,551,901 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $353,949,000 after purchasing an additional 75,777 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 32.9% during the first quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 2,204,801 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $302,290,000 after purchasing an additional 546,298 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.1% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 1,354,610 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $212,681,000 after purchasing an additional 65,938 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc (NYSE: WMS) designs and manufactures water management products for the construction, infrastructure, agriculture and residential markets. Founded in 1966 and headquartered in Hilliard, Ohio, the company is known for its thermoplastic corrugated pipe and related systems used to collect, convey, store and manage stormwater and wastewater.

Its product portfolio includes stormwater detention and infiltration systems, sanitary and septic sewer products, agricultural drainage systems, erosion and sediment control products, and water-quality solutions.