JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Price Target to $65.00

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase cut its price target on Ashland from $70 to $65 while maintaining an "overweight" rating, implying roughly a 21.85% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: six Buys, four Holds and one Sell give an average rating of "Hold" and an average target of $64.44, with UBS and Deutsche Bank reiterating buys while Wells Fargo cut its target to $50 and set an "equal weight" rating.
• Ashland reported quarterly EPS of $0.91 (below the $0.97 estimate) with revenue of $964 million; the stock traded at $53.35 on the latest session, has a market cap of $2.44 billion and a 12‑month range of $46.29–$65.64.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $70.00 to $65.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "overweight" rating on the basic materials company's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target would indicate a potential upside of 21.85% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Ashland in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $63.00 price target on shares of Ashland in a report on Monday, February 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of Ashland in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Ashland in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Ashland from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.44.

Ashland Price Performance

NYSE:ASH traded up $4.20 on Thursday, reaching $53.35. 1,439,786 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 698,991. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $56.48. The firm has a market cap of $2.44 billion, a PE ratio of -3.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.45. Ashland has a 12 month low of $46.29 and a 12 month high of $65.64.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $964.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $485.66 million. Ashland had a negative net margin of 38.26% and a positive return on equity of 7.58%. Ashland's revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.99 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Ashland will post 3.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASH. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its stake in Ashland by 3,673.3% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 566 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ashland by 59.0% in the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Ashland in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Ashland in the third quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new stake in Ashland in the third quarter worth about $57,000. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

About Ashland

Ashland Inc is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and supplies a broad range of performance and process-critical additives, ingredients and technologies. Its portfolio spans performance additives for coatings, adhesives and sealants; specialty ingredients for personal care and pharmaceutical applications; and process aids used in water treatment and other industrial processes. Ashland aims to address customer challenges by delivering tailored solutions that improve product performance, processing efficiency and sustainability outcomes.

Founded in 1924 as the Ashland Oil & Refining Company, the firm gradually expanded into the specialty chemicals sector over the second half of the 20th century.

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