Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Price Target Raised to $75.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ashland’s price target from $65 to $75 and kept an overweight rating, implying about 12.7% upside from the prior close.
• Other analysts were mixed on the stock, with recent targets ranging from $50 to $72; MarketBeat says Ashland currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $63.78.
• Shares of Ashland rose 2.4% to $66.55 in Friday trading. The company also recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.91, missing expectations of $0.97, while revenue came in slightly below forecasts.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the basic materials company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 12.70% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $58.00 price objective on Ashland in a report on Monday, May 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Ashland from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Argus decreased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $70.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $63.78.

Ashland Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of ASH stock traded up $1.55 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $66.55. 32,511 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 844,993. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.41. The company's 50-day moving average price is $60.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.20. Ashland has a 12-month low of $46.29 and a 12-month high of $68.25. The company has a current ratio of 3.06, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $482.00 million for 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%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ashland will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ashland by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,215 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 11,039 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $614,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 4,940 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in Ashland by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,815 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $226,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Ashland by 59.0% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the period. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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