Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Ashland (NYSE:ASH) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. 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 note on Thursday, August 15th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Ashland from $105.00 to $92.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ashland from an underweight rating to a neutral rating and cut their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $103.50.

Ashland Stock Performance

NYSE ASH opened at $87.00 on Friday. Ashland has a twelve month low of $70.82 and a twelve month high of $102.50. The stock has a market cap of $4.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.08, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $89.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Ashland had a return on equity of 5.98% and a net margin of 7.01%. 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 prior year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ashland will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, September 1st were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.97%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ashland

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Ashland in the first quarter valued at approximately $624,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 56.5% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 216,102 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $21,042,000 after purchasing an additional 78,013 shares during the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ashland in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,480,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ashland by 427.1% during the first quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,928 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,454,000 after acquiring an additional 12,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in Ashland in the fourth quarter valued at about $899,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

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.