Natixis Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,711 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $3,412,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 16.9% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,519,118 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $261,609,000 after acquiring an additional 219,629 shares during the last quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.7% in the second quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,430,091 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $229,372,000 after buying an additional 64,618 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.8% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,384,276 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $217,553,000 after buying an additional 75,455 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.6% during the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,382,735 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $221,777,000 after buying an additional 7,690 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 772,588 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $123,920,000 after buying an additional 94,019 shares in the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE WMS opened at $131.85 on Friday. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $117.97 and a 12 month high of $184.27. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $148.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $157.56. The stock has a market cap of $10.22 billion, a PE ratio of 21.00, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.53. The company has a current ratio of 3.19, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 8th. The construction company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by ($0.23). Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 40.31% and a net margin of 16.89%. The company had revenue of $782.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $819.41 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.71 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is 10.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Loop Capital lowered their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $194.00 to $172.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $192.00 to $184.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $174.00 to $161.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $135.00 price target (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Advanced Drainage Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.29.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

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.