Essex Investment Management Co. LLC Has $5.95 Million Holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. $WMS

Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 345.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 42,898 shares of the construction company’s stock after acquiring an additional 33,274 shares during the period. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC owned 0.06% of Advanced Drainage Systems worth $5,950,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of WMS. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP increased its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 3,234 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $449,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 16.2% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 702 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 0.6% in the second quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 17,000 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $1,953,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 4.2% in the second quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,132 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $360,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

Shares of WMS stock opened at $172.79 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $153.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $144.55. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a one year low of $93.92 and a one year high of $178.41. The firm has a market cap of $13.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 4.12 and a quick ratio of 3.08.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The construction company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.16. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 27.72% and a net margin of 15.75%.The company had revenue of $693.35 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $686.37 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.09 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.98%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider D. Scott Barbour sold 80,030 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.95, for a total transaction of $11,920,468.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 42,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,385,039.65. This trade represents a 65.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas J. Sr. Waun sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,245,500. This represents a 6.26% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,500 shares of company stock worth $14,416,901. Corporate insiders own 1.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on WMS shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $187.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $176.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Advanced Drainage Systems has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.00.

About Advanced Drainage Systems

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc (NYSE: WMS) is a leading manufacturer and supplier of water management solutions in North America. Headquartered in Hilliard, Ohio, the company specializes in the design, production and distribution of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) drainage pipe and related products. Its core business addresses stormwater management, on-site septic systems and erosion control for residential, commercial and infrastructure projects.

The company’s product portfolio includes corrugated plastic pipe, tubing, fittings, geocells, geogrids and stormwater structures such as inlets, manholes and detention/retention systems.