Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Increases Stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,382,735 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,690 shares during the period. Advanced Drainage Systems accounts for about 0.4% of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $221,777,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,265,169 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,251,353,000 after buying an additional 395,099 shares during the period. Boston Partners increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 16.9% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,519,118 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $261,609,000 after buying an additional 219,629 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.7% during the 2nd 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 during the period. Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,308,821 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $209,922,000 after acquiring an additional 26,581 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,162,388 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $200,210,000 after acquiring an additional 4,100 shares in the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMS has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $202.00 to $194.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $200.00 to $187.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $188.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $192.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Thursday, August 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $190.14.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $152.37 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $162.69. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.32 and a 12-month high of $184.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The stock has a market cap of $11.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.66, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.53.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The construction company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.08. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 17.09% and a return on equity of 43.60%. The business had revenue of $815.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $828.00 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. 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, August 30th. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.94%.

Advanced Drainage Systems Company 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.