Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $107.88.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company raised Ashland from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $100.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Ashland from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Ashland from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $100.00 to $126.00 in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Ashland from $101.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st.

Ashland Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Ashland stock opened at $94.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 3.15 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Ashland has a 1-year low of $70.82 and a 1-year high of $102.50. The business has a 50-day moving average of $97.75 and a 200-day moving average of $92.65. The company has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 25.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.92.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $575.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $574.64 million. Ashland had a net margin of 9.09% and a return on equity of 5.57%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.43 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ashland will post 4.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, June 1st were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. This is an increase from Ashland’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Ashland’s payout ratio is currently 42.97%.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Commerce Bank boosted its stake in Ashland by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 4,725 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $398,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Ashland by 122.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its holdings in Ashland by 5.8% during the first quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 3,358 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $327,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its holdings in Ashland by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 64,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,411,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in shares of Ashland by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 21,035 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,773,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ashland Company Profile

Ashland Inc provides additives and specialty ingredients in the North and Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates through Life Sciences, Personal Care, Specialty Additives, and Intermediates segments. The Life Sciences segment offers pharmaceutical solutions, including controlled release polymers, disintegrants, tablet coatings, thickeners, solubilizers, and tablet binders; nutrition solutions, such as thickeners, stabilizers, emulsifiers, and additives; and nutraceutical solutions comprising products for weight management, joint comfort, stomach and intestinal health, sports nutrition, and general wellness, as well as custom formulation, toll processing, and particle engineering solutions.