Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Increases Stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 664,436 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 37,977 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 1.33% of Ashland worth $56,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of Ashland by 167.8% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 107,813 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $9,070,000 after acquiring an additional 67,556 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Ashland by 696.4% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 52,372 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $4,415,000 after purchasing an additional 45,796 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Ashland by 18.2% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,671,593 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $140,932,000 after purchasing an additional 256,828 shares during the last quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ashland in the 4th quarter worth $818,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ashland by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 188,767 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $15,418,000 after buying an additional 6,246 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of Ashland stock traded up $1.46 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $100.08. 286,499 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 427,116. Ashland Inc. has a one year low of $70.82 and a one year high of $100.09. The firm has a market capitalization 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. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $96.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.23.

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

Ashland Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st. This is a positive change from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Ashland's payout ratio is currently 40.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASH has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ashland from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Mizuho increased their price objective on Ashland from $101.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Ashland from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Ashland from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $100.00 to $126.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Ashland from a "c+" rating to a "b-" rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $106.44.

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.