Wolverine Asset Management LLC Purchases Shares of 8,500 Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Key Points

• Wolverine Asset Management LLC has invested $504,000 in Ashland Inc. by acquiring 8,500 shares during the first quarter, reflecting growing institutional interest in the basic materials company.
• Analysts have mixed views on Ashland's stock performance, with a current consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price averaging $65.60.
• Ashland recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.415 per share, which yields approximately 3.2% annually, despite a negative dividend payout ratio.

Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 8,500 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $504,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 31,799 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $2,272,000 after buying an additional 3,541 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ashland by 30.3% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 10,465 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $748,000 after acquiring an additional 2,431 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Ashland by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 379,113 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $27,091,000 after purchasing an additional 22,876 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ashland by 94.5% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 91,775 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $6,558,000 after purchasing an additional 44,600 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Ashland during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,943,000. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ASH shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. UBS Group cut their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Ashland from $71.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ashland from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.60.

Ashland Price Performance

NYSE:ASH traded down $0.79 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $54.10. 393,376 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 663,016. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $51.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.68. The company has a market cap of $2.47 billion, a PE ratio of -2.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.80 and a beta of 0.49. Ashland Inc. has a 1 year low of $45.21 and a 1 year high of $90.61.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The basic materials company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $463.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $479.34 million. Ashland had a positive return on equity of 6.82% and a negative net margin of 46.01%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

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

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.