16,492 Shares in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Purchased by Centiva Capital LP

Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 16,492 shares of the construction company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,906,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 50.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 96,764 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $11,186,000 after purchasing an additional 32,418 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 21.2% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 738,749 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $85,399,000 after acquiring an additional 129,252 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 593,562 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $68,616,000 after acquiring an additional 31,510 shares in the last quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC increased its stake in Advanced Drainage Systems by 64.9% in the fourth quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC now owns 5,658 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $654,000 after acquiring an additional 2,227 shares during the period. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 14.0% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 163,910 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $18,948,000 after purchasing an additional 20,146 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on WMS shares. UBS Group raised Advanced Drainage Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $149.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $180.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $153.78.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE WMS opened at $112.91 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 3.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a market cap of $8.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.31. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12-month low of $93.92 and a 12-month high of $184.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $108.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $121.12.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The construction company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.25). Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 15.90% and a return on equity of 35.79%. On average, research analysts expect that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is currently 10.70%.

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.