Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Downgraded to "Strong Sell" Rating by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Ashland (NYSE:ASH) from a "hold" to a "Strong Sell", and Weiss Ratings also cut its rating to a deeper sell tier.
• Analyst coverage is mixed — six Buys, three Holds and two Sells — leaving a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.78.
• In the latest quarter Ashland missed EPS expectations ($0.91 vs. $0.97), reported a negative net margin (39.03%), but the board modestly raised the quarterly dividend to $0.42 per share (1.2%).

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Ashland from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Ashland in a report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley set a $58.00 price objective on Ashland in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Ashland from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Ashland from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ashland currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.78.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of ASH opened at $54.68 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 3.06 and a quick ratio of 1.78. Ashland has a one year low of $46.29 and a one year high of $65.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a P/E ratio of -3.55, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.40. The business has a fifty day moving average of $55.28 and a 200 day moving average of $56.63.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.06). Ashland had a positive return on equity of 8.06% and a negative net margin of 39.03%.The firm had revenue of $964.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $485.61 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. The business's revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ashland will post 3.45 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its holdings in Ashland by 3,673.3% during the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 566 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in Ashland by 59.0% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Ashland during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Ashland during the third quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Ashland during the third quarter valued at about $57,000. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Key Ashland News

Here are the key news stories impacting Ashland this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board raised the quarterly dividend to $0.42 per share (1.2% increase), payable June 15 to holders of record June 1 — a direct cash-return signal that often supports investor demand. Ashland board authorizes quarterly dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Recent data/coverage highlights significant institutional buying and several bullish analyst price targets (median target ~$65), which can buoy sentiment and provide technical support. QuiverQuant dividend and institutional activity summary
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street consensus remains mixed: an average analyst rating of "Hold" signals limited near-term conviction—supportive for stability but not a strong buy catalyst. Ashland Given Average Rating of "Hold"
• Neutral Sentiment: Local media stories referencing “Ashland” (city-level incidents, dispensary opening, election results, missing person alerts) are largely unrelated to Ashland Inc.’s business fundamentals and likely have minimal impact on the stock. Examples: substance found in Ohio River update; dispensary opening in Ashland, KY; county election results. City of Ashland provides new update after 'substance' found in Ohio River
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly results included an EPS miss and continued margin pressure (reported EPS below estimates; negative net margin noted in filings), which constrains valuation and earnings-driven upside until profitability trends improve.
• Neutral Sentiment: Small dividend raise (1.2%) is supportive but modest — may attract income-focused investors but could be interpreted as limited growth capacity by others. QuiverQuant dividend summary

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.

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