DNB Asset Management AS Sells 1,351 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

DNB Asset Management AS lowered its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 11.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,964 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 1,351 shares during the quarter. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $1,759,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 319.4% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 151 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Avalon Trust Co purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Tobam bought a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems in the 1st quarter worth about $56,000. 89.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $182.00 to $193.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $189.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com cut Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $188.86.

Insider Activity at Advanced Drainage Systems

In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, insider D. Scott Barbour sold 85,938 shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.10, for a total transaction of $14,961,805.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 45,994 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,007,555.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, insider D. Scott Barbour sold 85,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $174.10, for a total transaction of $14,961,805.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 45,994 shares in the company, valued at $8,007,555.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Tim A. Makowski sold 3,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.68, for a total value of $648,584.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $773,180.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 176,004 shares of company stock worth $30,547,285. Company insiders own 2.05% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

WMS opened at $153.56 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 2.96. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $102.32 and a fifty-two week high of $184.27. The company has a fifty day moving average of $165.76 and a 200 day moving average of $162.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.93, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.55.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 16th. The construction company reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.28. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 17.74% and a return on equity of 46.93%. The company had revenue of $653.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.99 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.06 earnings per share. Advanced Drainage Systems’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 7.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st were paid a $0.16 dividend. This is an increase from Advanced Drainage Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.14. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.94%.

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.