Advanced Drainage Systems (NYSE:WMS) Sets New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $101.59 and last traded at $102.14, with a volume of 197707 shares. The stock had previously closed at $109.99.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Advanced Drainage Systems from $160.00 to $149.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Advanced Drainage Systems from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised Advanced Drainage Systems from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Advanced Drainage Systems has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $160.89.

Advanced Drainage Systems Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 3.21 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The company has a market cap of $8.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.61. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $115.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $129.51.

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

Advanced Drainage Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.62%. Advanced Drainage Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.70%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Advanced Drainage Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp raised its position in Advanced Drainage Systems by 8.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,541,688 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $399,452,000 after purchasing an additional 206,105 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Advanced Drainage Systems by 50.4% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 96,764 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $11,186,000 after buying an additional 32,418 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,694,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in 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. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Advanced Drainage Systems by 5.2% in 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. 89.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.