Ross M. Jones Sells 125,000 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Stock

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Director Ross M. Jones sold 125,000 shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.44, for a total transaction of $16,305,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,014,369 shares in the company, valued at approximately $132,314,292.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

Shares of WMS opened at $130.25 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $122.32 and its 200-day moving average is $101.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 2.78 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The company has a market capitalization of $10.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.40. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.02 and a fifty-two week high of $141.51.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 3rd. The construction company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.53 by $0.51. The firm had revenue of $778.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $746.08 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 50.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.22 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 5.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 15th. Investors of record on Friday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 31st. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is 9.29%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the 1st quarter worth about $1,537,000. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Tortoise Capital Advisors L.L.C. now owns 9,547 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $783,000 after acquiring an additional 923 shares in the last quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Advanced Drainage Systems during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,686,000. Credit Suisse AG lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 43.0% in the fourth quarter. Credit Suisse AG now owns 182,714 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $14,977,000 after acquiring an additional 54,969 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems in the first quarter worth approximately $1,841,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on WMS shares. Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Thursday, August 24th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $148.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 21st. StockNews.com started coverage on Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $115.00 to $120.00 in a report on Monday, May 22nd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Advanced Drainage Systems presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.00.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

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.