Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Reaches New 52-Week High at $99.74

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $99.74 and last traded at $99.72, with a volume of 134086 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $98.62.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ASH. UBS Group lifted their price target on Ashland from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. TheStreet raised shares of Ashland from a "c+" rating to a "b-" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ashland from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $100.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Ashland from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $100.00 to $126.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Ashland from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $106.44.

Ashland Stock Performance

The stock's 50 day moving average price is $96.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.23. The company has a current ratio of 3.15, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.92.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.13. Ashland had a return on equity of 5.57% and a net margin of 9.09%. The business had revenue of $575.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $574.64 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.43 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. This is a boost from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Ashland's payout ratio is presently 40.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ASH. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Ashland by 33.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,260,333 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $184,624,000 after acquiring an additional 560,916 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Ashland by 274.4% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 495,748 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $41,797,000 after acquiring an additional 363,328 shares during the period. Atlantic Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Ashland in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $22,880,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Ashland by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,671,593 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $140,932,000 after acquiring an additional 256,828 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Ashland by 17.9% in the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,656,654 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $139,673,000 after acquiring an additional 252,104 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.