Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Upgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to Overweight Rating

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland (NYSE:ASH) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $71.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their prior price target of $68.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Ashland from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com downgraded Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut Ashland from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.60.

Ashland Trading Up 5.0 %

Shares of ASH opened at $59.79 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $63.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $73.99. Ashland has a twelve month low of $54.86 and a twelve month high of $102.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -90.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.89.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.51). Ashland had a negative net margin of 1.12% and a positive return on equity of 7.41%. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ashland will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is presently -245.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ashland

In other news, CEO Guillermo Novo purchased 31,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $64.24 per share, for a total transaction of $2,010,326.56. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 31,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,010,326.56. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in shares of Ashland in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Ashland in the third quarter worth $38,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in Ashland during the fourth quarter valued at $56,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Ashland by 80.6% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 959 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ashland by 84.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 994 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

About Ashland

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.