Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Buys New Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 17,698 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,265,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in Ashland in the fourth quarter worth $56,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Ashland by 80.6% in 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 last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 84.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 994 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 454 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its holdings in Ashland by 302.4% during the fourth quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,489 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $106,000 after acquiring an additional 1,119 shares during the period. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Ashland in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $127,000. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $85.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Ashland from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on 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 target price on Ashland in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $68.60.

Ashland Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:ASH traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $49.60. 234,698 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 542,734. The company has a market capitalization of $2.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -75.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company's 50 day moving average is $51.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.07. Ashland Inc. has a twelve month low of $45.21 and a twelve month high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $479.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $514.79 million. Ashland had a negative net margin of 1.12% and a positive return on equity of 7.41%. Ashland's revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.415 per share. This represents a $1.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. This is a boost from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -69.17%.

Ashland Company 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.