Avalon Trust Co Purchases Shares of 270 Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 270 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 13.3% in the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,445,326 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $164,521,000 after buying an additional 169,517 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 428.8% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 22,449 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,157,000 after purchasing an additional 18,204 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 1.0% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,878,726 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $783,005,000 after purchasing an additional 65,038 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 82.9% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,990 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $1,968,000 after purchasing an additional 6,343 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 113.9% in the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 7,316 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $833,000 after buying an additional 3,896 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.13.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

NYSE:WMS traded up $2.95 on Friday, reaching $164.89. 347,171 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 380,892. The firm has a market cap of $12.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 3.03 and a quick ratio of 2.04. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $164.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.08. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52 week low of $82.00 and a 52 week high of $176.31.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The construction company reported $1.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.44. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 49.79%. The company had revenue of $662.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $632.69 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. Advanced Drainage Systems’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is presently 8.90%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.52, for a total value of $1,635,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,450 shares in the company, valued at $2,199,344. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Michael G. Huebert sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.52, for a total value of $1,635,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,450 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,199,344. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ross M. Jones sold 762,895 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.00, for a total value of $124,351,885.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 70,749 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,532,087. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

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.