Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH – Get Free Report) crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $63.56 and traded as high as $68.96. Ashland shares last traded at $68.6260, with a volume of 564,374 shares.
Trending Headlines about Ashland
Here are the key news stories impacting Ashland this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Brokerages assign Ashland Inc. an average price target of $73.90, implying roughly 6% upside from the stock’s recent level. The target provides near-term support for the shares, although the company’s elevated price-to-earnings ratio means investors may expect additional earnings improvement to justify further gains. Ashland Inc. Stock Has Average Target Price of $73.90 According to Brokerages
- Neutral Sentiment: Reports about a court ruling involving Ashland, Oregon’s City Hall property do not involve Ashland Inc. and should not affect the chemicals company’s stock. Judge sides with Ashland in court ruling over city hall property Judge sides with Ashland in City Hall lawsuit
- Neutral Sentiment: Other recent stories cover local flooding, county property values, tourism, police fundraising, school football and ballet activities. These items are unrelated to Ashland Inc.’s operations, financial results or outlook and therefore provide no identifiable catalyst for ASH shares. Flooding hampers travel around Ashland
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ASH shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Ashland from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ashland in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Ashland from $58.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ashland from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of Ashland in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.90.
Ashland Trading Up 1.6%
The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 3.05 and a quick ratio of 1.89. The business has a fifty day moving average of $71.83 and a 200-day moving average of $63.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.40.
Ashland Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 1st. Ashland’s payout ratio is presently 147.37%.
Institutional Trading of Ashland
A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASH. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ashland in the second quarter worth approximately $376,376,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ashland by 648,370.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,945,412 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $128,183,000 after acquiring an additional 1,945,112 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in Ashland by 13,240.8% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,736,173 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $101,861,000 after purchasing an additional 1,723,159 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor purchased a new position in Ashland during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $105,471,000. Finally, Empyrean Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in Ashland during the 4th quarter valued at $31,799,000. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Ashland
Ashland Inc (NYSE: ASH) is a global specialty materials company that develops and manufactures functional ingredients, additives and other products used in a range of consumer and industrial applications. Its products are designed to improve the performance, appearance, stability and processing characteristics of materials and finished goods.
The company serves markets including pharmaceuticals, personal care, coatings, construction, food and beverage, specialty chemicals and other industrial sectors.
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