Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Sets New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Ashland shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $69.64 after closing at $68.51, signaling strong recent momentum in the stock.
• Analyst sentiment has been mixed but generally improved, with multiple firms raising targets or upgrading ratings; JPMorgan and Seaport both set $75 price targets, while MarketBeat shows an average rating of Hold and an average target of $63.78.
• The company recently posted quarterly earnings of $0.91 EPS, missing estimates, but also increased its dividend to $0.42 per share quarterly, implying a 2.4% annualized yield.

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $69.64 and last traded at $69.0770, with a volume of 75443 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $68.51.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ASH has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Ashland from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Seaport Research Partners upgraded shares of Ashland from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ashland from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Ashland in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ashland from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $63.78.

Ashland Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.18 billion, a PE ratio of -4.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 3.06 and a quick ratio of 1.78. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $62.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.67.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $482.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.99 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This is a positive change from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -10.89%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Ashland by 59.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in Ashland during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Ashland by 38.0% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in Ashland by 398.3% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,460 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167 shares during the period. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its position in shares of Ashland by 535.8% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,348 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 1,136 shares during the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by 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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