Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New $213,000 Investment in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,190 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Ashland by 139.7% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,414,765 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $115,558,000 after acquiring an additional 824,600 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Ashland by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,260,333 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $184,624,000 after purchasing an additional 560,916 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Ashland by 274.4% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 495,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $41,797,000 after purchasing an additional 363,328 shares during the period. Atlantic Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Ashland during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $22,880,000. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Ashland by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,656,654 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $139,673,000 after buying an additional 252,104 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE ASH traded up $0.86 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $96.06. The company had a trading volume of 252,676 shares, compared to its average volume of 304,569. Ashland Inc. has a 52 week low of $70.82 and a 52 week high of $101.94. The business’s 50-day moving average is $95.25 and its 200-day moving average is $86.08. The stock has a market cap of $4.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.50 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a current ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $473.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $478.69 million. Ashland had a net margin of 7.62% and a return on equity of 5.95%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASH has been the subject of several research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Ashland in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $108.00 price objective for the company. TheStreet upgraded Ashland from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Ashland from $70.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Ashland from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $100.00 to $126.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.00.

Ashland 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.