Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Shares Acquired by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 42.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,109 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,779 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.12% of Ashland worth $3,327,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ASH. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ashland by 2,736.0% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 709 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Ashland by 212.4% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 706 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Ashland by 285.7% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 914 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 677 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Ashland by 80.6% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 959 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $69,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in shares of Ashland by 33.5% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,468 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the period. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ashland Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of ASH opened at $51.18 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $51.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.34 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.33, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Ashland Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.21 and a 1-year high of $98.44.

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

Ashland Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Ashland Profile

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.

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