Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Hits New 52-Week High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Ashland shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $68.32 and ending the session around $68.23, up about 1.4%. The move came despite relatively light volume.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leaning constructive: JPMorgan raised its price target to $75 and Seaport upgraded the stock to Buy, while other firms cut targets. Overall, the consensus rating remains Hold with an average target price of $63.78.
• Recent fundamentals were modest, with Ashland missing quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, though revenue still grew slightly year over year. The company also recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.42, implying a 2.5% annualized yield.

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $68.32 and last traded at $68.2290, with a volume of 20066 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $66.74.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Ashland from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ashland from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Seaport Research Partners raised Ashland from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Ashland from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Argus dropped their price target on Ashland from $70.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ashland currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $63.78.

Ashland Stock Up 1.4%

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $61.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $59.35. The company has a current ratio of 3.06, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 0.41.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last posted 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). The firm had revenue of $482.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $485.61 million. Ashland had a negative net margin of 39.03% and a positive return on equity of 8.06%. Ashland's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.99 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. This is an increase from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -10.89%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Ashland by 284.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,454,646 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $172,318,000 after buying an additional 2,555,585 shares during the period. Standard Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Ashland by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Standard Investments LLC now owns 2,625,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $154,009,000 after acquiring an additional 385,000 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 12.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,496,021 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $138,793,000 after acquiring an additional 267,741 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 775.6% during the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,900,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $111,473,000 after purchasing an additional 1,682,994 shares during the period. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Ashland by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,801,062 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $105,668,000 after purchasing an additional 345,919 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

About Ashland

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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