Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Posted by on Aug 7th, 2026

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH – Get Free Report)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $58.00 to $78.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Ashland traded as high as $78.25 and last traded at $76.9190, with a volume of 1753247 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $72.46.

ASH has been the topic of a number of other reports. Mizuho increased their price target on Ashland from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Ashland in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ashland from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Ashland from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ashland presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $73.90.

Read Our Latest Report on ASH

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ashland by 59.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ashland during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in shares of Ashland during the third quarter worth about $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Ashland by 38.0% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Ashland by 398.3% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,460 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167 shares in the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ashland Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.38. The stock has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.47, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.40.

About Ashland

(Get Free Report)

Ashland Inc is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and supplies a broad range of performance and process-critical additives, ingredients and technologies. Its portfolio spans performance additives for coatings, adhesives and sealants; specialty ingredients for personal care and pharmaceutical applications; and process aids used in water treatment and other industrial processes. Ashland aims to address customer challenges by delivering tailored solutions that improve product performance, processing efficiency and sustainability outcomes.

Founded in 1924 as the Ashland Oil & Refining Company, the firm gradually expanded into the specialty chemicals sector over the second half of the 20th century.

Further Reading

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