Brokerages Set Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Target Price at $103.50

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $103.50.

ASH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Ashland from $105.00 to $92.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on Ashland from $101.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st.

Ashland Stock Performance

NYSE:ASH opened at $88.53 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $92.37 and its 200 day moving average is $94.79. The firm has a market cap of $4.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 3.15. Ashland has a 52-week low of $70.82 and a 52-week high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. Ashland had a net margin of 9.09% and a return on equity of 5.57%. The firm had revenue of $544.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $577.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ashland will post 4.56 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.83%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.97%.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ASH. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Ashland by 122.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 278 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Ashland by 143.9% during the fourth quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 378 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ashland by 163.7% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 559 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Ashland during the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,000. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its holdings in Ashland by 143.7% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 809 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 477 shares during the period. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.