Petrus Trust Company LTA Has $1.09 Million Position in Ashland Inc. $ASH

Key Points

• Petrus Trust Company LTA increased its holdings in Ashland Inc. by 180.4%, acquiring an additional 11,807 shares, bringing its total to 18,351 shares valued at approximately $1,088,000.
• Ashland recently reported earnings of $1.04 per share for the quarter, missing expectations, with revenue of $463 million, down 14.9% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.415 per share, reflecting a yield of 3.0%, with the dividend payout ratio currently at -8.86%.

Petrus Trust Company LTA raised its holdings in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 180.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,351 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,807 shares during the period. Petrus Trust Company LTA's holdings in Ashland were worth $1,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ASH. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ashland by 2,736.0% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 709 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Ashland by 212.4% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 706 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Ashland by 63.9% in the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 834 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ashland by 285.7% in the first 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, Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in Ashland by 1,745.8% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,329 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 1,257 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Ashland Stock Performance

Ashland stock traded down $1.30 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $53.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 585,284 shares, compared to its average volume of 397,499. Ashland Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.21 and a 1-year high of $89.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $53.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $53.05. The company has a market cap of $2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.84, a PEG ratio of 3.91 and a beta of 0.52.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.15 by ($0.11). Ashland had a positive return on equity of 6.82% and a negative net margin of 46.01%.The business had revenue of $463.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $479.34 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.49 EPS. Ashland's revenue for the quarter was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Ashland has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be issued a $0.415 dividend. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -8.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ashland from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ashland from $73.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Ashland in a research note on Monday. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Ashland from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $61.43.

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.