Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Has $1.65 Million Position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its position in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 83.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,987 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,650 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd’s holdings in Ashland were worth $1,651,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ASH. Equitable Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 6,431 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $559,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ashland by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 7,295 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $681,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. boosted its stake in Ashland by 5.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,104 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its stake in Ashland by 3.8% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,867 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in Ashland by 5.4% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $307,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of Ashland stock opened at $79.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.88. Ashland Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.04 and a twelve month high of $102.50. The company’s fifty day moving average is $84.05 and its 200 day moving average is $90.05. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $522.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $524.07 million. Ashland had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.41 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ashland Inc. will post 4.82 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. Ashland’s payout ratio is 48.36%.

Insider Transactions at Ashland

In related news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of Ashland stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total transaction of $67,617.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $224,585.70. This trade represents a 23.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ASH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Ashland from $92.00 to $83.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.29.

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.