Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $156.5556.

Several equities analysts recently commented on WMS shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $158.00 to $168.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $167.00 price target (up previously from $146.00) on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Advanced Drainage Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, August 8th.

Insider Activity at Advanced Drainage Systems

In other Advanced Drainage Systems news, insider D. Scott Barbour sold 80,030 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.95, for a total transaction of $11,920,468.50. Following the sale, the insider owned 42,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,385,039.65. The trade was a 65.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Tim A. Makowski sold 4,901 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.21, for a total value of $731,278.21. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $368,101.07. The trade was a 66.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 87,203 shares of company stock worth $12,990,384. Corporate insiders own 1.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Advanced Drainage Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,537,094 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $818,905,000 after acquiring an additional 204,826 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 50.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 3,114,224 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $338,360,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049,697 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 3,043,909 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $348,709,000 after purchasing an additional 139,495 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,416,942 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $335,230,000 after purchasing an additional 238,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.7% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,734,537 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $188,457,000 after purchasing an additional 45,993 shares during the period. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

WMS opened at $143.88 on Friday. Advanced Drainage Systems has a fifty-two week low of $93.92 and a fifty-two week high of $153.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $141.70 and a 200 day moving average of $128.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 2.25 and a current ratio of 3.22. The firm has a market cap of $11.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.97, a PEG ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.33.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The construction company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.27. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 14.82% and a return on equity of 29.57%. The firm had revenue of $850.38 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $802.49 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.70 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Advanced Drainage Systems has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems will post 6.1 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Investors of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 12.29%.

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.