Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 2,536 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund decreased its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 31.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,608 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 2,536 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $648,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 8.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,541,688 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $399,452,000 after purchasing an additional 206,105 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 34.6% during the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 2,530,000 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $291,723,000 after acquiring an additional 650,052 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,384,276 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $217,553,000 after acquiring an additional 75,455 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,186,878 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $186,578,000 after acquiring an additional 59,158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its position 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 valued at $85,399,000 after acquiring an additional 129,252 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Advanced Drainage Systems Price Performance

NYSE:WMS opened at $107.72 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.36 billion, a PE ratio of 18.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.52. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 12 month low of $107.13 and a 12 month high of $184.27. 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’s 50-day moving average price is $119.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.63.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 22nd. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $192.00 to $184.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from $195.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $164.25.

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.