Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Share Price Crosses Above 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $56.15 and traded as high as $58.38. Ashland shares last traded at $57.9670, with a volume of 566,571 shares traded.

Trending Headlines about Ashland

Here are the key news stories impacting Ashland this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Last quarter Ashland beat EPS estimates ($0.26 vs. $0.23), showing some underlying earnings resilience that could limit downside into the report. Analysts still forecast ~3.81 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple local news reports about shootings, an officer being wounded and other incidents in towns named Ashland — these are community/public-safety stories, not corporate developments, and are unlikely to move Ashland Inc.’s stock. Former Ashland City Schools employee charged
• Neutral Sentiment: Investigation continues after man shot, killed by police in Ashland — local incident, not company-related. Investigation continues after man shot
• Neutral Sentiment: Officer shot, driver dead after Ashland motor vehicle stop — local news, unrelated to Ashland Inc. Officer shot, driver dead
• Neutral Sentiment: Officer shot after traffic stop in Ashland; 1 man dead, AG says — local criminal report, not corporate. Officer shot after traffic stop
• Neutral Sentiment: Community event coverage (Ashland’s 22nd annual Train Day) — local positive community news with no clear corporate impact. Ashland’s 22nd annual Train Day
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional local outlets reporting officer wounded and one person killed in Ashland incidents — all local coverage, unlikely to affect ASH. 1 person killed in police shooting
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks preview states Ashland “doesn’t possess the right combination” to likely beat in the upcoming earnings report, which can put downward pressure heading into the release. Ashland (ASH) Reports Next Week
• Negative Sentiment: Operational/financial headwinds from the last quarter — revenue missed expectations ($386M vs. ~$401M est.) and the company reported a negative net margin — remain investor concerns ahead of earnings and help explain the share weakness.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on ASH shares. Morgan Stanley set a $63.00 price objective on shares of Ashland in a research note on Monday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Ashland from $77.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ashland from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Ashland in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $66.11.

Ashland Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 2nd. The basic materials company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.03. Ashland had a negative net margin of 38.26% and a positive return on equity of 7.58%. The company had revenue of $386.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $401.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.28 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 3.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Ashland by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 182,267 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,732,000 after purchasing an additional 61,673 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ashland during the third quarter worth about $3,067,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Ashland in the 3rd quarter valued at about $10,397,000. Standard Investments LLC acquired a new position in Ashland during the 3rd quarter valued at about $107,318,000. Finally, Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Ashland by 40.4% during the 3rd quarter. Altrinsic Global Advisors LLC now owns 199,376 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $9,552,000 after purchasing an additional 57,402 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Company Profile

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.