Cerity Partners LLC Buys 5,525 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 52.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,990 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,525 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Ashland were worth $948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 212.4% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 706 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 2,736.0% in the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 709 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 63.9% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 834 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ashland by 285.7% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 914 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in Ashland by 80.6% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 959 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Ashland from $71.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Ashland from $74.00 to $73.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ashland from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Mizuho set a $60.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Ashland from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $68.40.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ASH traded up $0.47 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $51.18. The company had a trading volume of 412,841 shares, compared to its average volume of 428,103. The company's 50 day moving average price is $51.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.16. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market cap of $2.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.51. Ashland Inc. has a 52-week low of $45.21 and a 52-week high of $98.44.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $479.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $514.79 million. Ashland had a negative net margin of 5.74% and a positive return on equity of 7.14%. Ashland's revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.415 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This is an increase from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. Ashland's dividend payout ratio is -69.17%.

About Ashland

Ashland Inc provides additives and specialty ingredients in the North and Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates through Life Sciences, Personal Care, Specialty Additives, and Intermediates segments. The Life Sciences segment offers pharmaceutical solutions, including controlled release polymers, disintegrants, tablet coatings, thickeners, solubilizers, and tablet binders; nutrition solutions, such as thickeners, stabilizers, emulsifiers, and additives; and nutraceutical solutions comprising products for weight management, joint comfort, stomach and intestinal health, sports nutrition, and general wellness, as well as custom formulation, toll processing, and particle engineering solutions.