Vontobel Holding Ltd. Lowers Stake in Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. lessened its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 35,755 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 4,423 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $5,029,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 47.8% during the first quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 495 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $60,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Advanced Drainage Systems

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on WMS shares. StockNews.com cut Advanced Drainage Systems from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.13.

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE WMS opened at $156.87 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $164.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $138.47. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $80.41 and a 52-week high of $176.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.94, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 3.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. Advanced Drainage Systems had a return on equity of 49.79% and a net margin of 17.65%. The firm had revenue of $662.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $632.69 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. Advanced Drainage Systems’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Advanced Drainage Systems’s payout ratio is currently 8.90%.

Advanced Drainage Systems 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.