Rathbones Group PLC Acquires 26,078 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Rathbones Group PLC raised its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 11.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 255,655 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,078 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $29,554,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 781 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management bought a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems in the fourth quarter valued at about $94,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 18.3% during 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 in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,005 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 1,298.6% during the 4th quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,021 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 948 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $149.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $134.00 price target for the company. UBS Group upgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com lowered Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Advanced Drainage Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.89.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $100.82 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a current ratio of 3.21, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.70. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $94.59 and a 12 month high of $184.27.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The construction company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.25). Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.90% and a return on equity of 35.79%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is currently 10.70%.

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.