Wells Fargo & Company Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Stock Price

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) had its price target dropped by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $80.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 25.77% from the company’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.57.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of ASH stock opened at $63.61 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.44. Ashland has a 52 week low of $62.84 and a 52 week high of $102.50. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $72.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.75. The company has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -96.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.87.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.51). Ashland had a positive return on equity of 7.17% and a negative net margin of 1.12%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ashland will post 4.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the business’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 transaction of $35,209.57. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. The trade was a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total value of $67,617.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $224,585.70. This represents a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 6,127.2% during 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 period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings 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 worth $226,000,000 after acquiring an additional 284,215 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Ashland by 2,060.5% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 179,151 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $12,802,000 after purchasing an additional 170,859 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 703.7% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 184,806 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,206,000 after purchasing an additional 161,812 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in Ashland by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,737,738 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $151,131,000 after purchasing an additional 103,517 shares during the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.