California Public Employees Retirement System Acquires 4,859 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 127,328 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,859 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $17,907,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 worth $164,521,000 after buying an additional 169,517 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 428.8% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 22,449 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $3,157,000 after purchasing an additional 18,204 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 1.0% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 82.9% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 13,990 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,968,000 after purchasing an additional 6,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 113.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 3,896 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $172.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.13.

Insider Activity

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of WMS opened at $162.82 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $164.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $141.03. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.64 billion, a PE ratio of 25.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.50. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $81.25 and a 12-month high of $176.31.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

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

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.