Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 200 Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)

Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,219 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems were worth $734,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WMS. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 76.4% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 6,672,684 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $561,907,000 after buying an additional 2,890,821 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 210.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,123,772 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $92,116,000 after buying an additional 761,995 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 55.8% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,054,386 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $173,000,000 after buying an additional 735,476 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 11.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,287,218 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $628,174,000 after acquiring an additional 526,175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Advanced Drainage Systems in the fourth quarter valued at $40,774,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Advanced Drainage Systems

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of Advanced Drainage Systems stock opened at $170.97 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 2.04 and a current ratio of 3.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $160.01 and a 200-day moving average of $135.81. Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.76 and a 52-week high of $176.31. The stock has a market cap of $13.27 billion, a PE ratio of 27.18, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.50.

Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The construction company reported $1.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $662.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $632.69 million. Advanced Drainage Systems had a net margin of 17.65% and a return on equity of 49.79%. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Advanced Drainage Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WMS. StockNews.com raised shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 16th. Barclays upped their price objective on Advanced Drainage Systems from $151.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 13th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on Advanced Drainage Systems from $138.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $155.13.

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.