First Financial Bank Trust Division Sells 1,917 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

First Financial Bank Trust Division lessened its stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 11.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,495 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 1,917 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Ashland were worth $1,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ASH. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Ashland by 3.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,773,170 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $262,037,000 after purchasing an additional 86,977 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Ashland by 12.3% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,598,602 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $226,000,000 after buying an additional 284,215 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,737,738 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $151,131,000 after buying an additional 103,517 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Ashland by 6,127.2% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 880,459 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $76,574,000 after buying an additional 866,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 827,642 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $72,000,000 after acquiring an additional 2,316 shares in the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ashland news, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total value of $35,209.57. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. This represents a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of Ashland stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,585.70. This trade represents a 23.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ashland Stock Performance

ASH stock traded down $1.72 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $69.74. The stock had a trading volume of 598,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 423,625. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.44. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $85.48. The stock has a market cap of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.86. Ashland Inc. has a 52-week low of $69.71 and a 52-week high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.02). Ashland had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 7.95%. The firm had revenue of $522.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $524.07 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 4.52 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st were paid a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Ashland’s payout ratio is currently 48.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ASH. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.00.

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.