UBS Group Cuts Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Price Target to $73.00

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) had its price objective reduced by UBS Group from $74.00 to $73.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the basic materials company's stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Ashland from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Ashland from $71.00 to $67.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Mizuho set a $60.00 target price on Ashland in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Ashland from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ashland has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $68.40.

Ashland Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of Ashland stock traded down $1.07 on Wednesday, hitting $53.40. The company had a trading volume of 312,021 shares, compared to its average volume of 561,197. Ashland has a 1 year low of $45.21 and a 1 year high of $98.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 2.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $50.94 and a 200-day moving average of $57.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -22.25, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.51.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by ($0.11). Ashland had a negative net margin of 5.74% and a positive return on equity of 7.14%. The company had revenue of $479.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $514.79 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.27 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ashland will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.415 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. This is a positive change from Ashland's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -69.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ashland by 226.4% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 899,061 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $53,009,000 after acquiring an additional 623,601 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Ashland by 33.1% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,291,157 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $132,383,000 after acquiring an additional 569,740 shares during the period. Shapiro Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Ashland by 172.5% during the fourth quarter. Shapiro Capital Management LLC now owns 670,785 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $47,934,000 after purchasing an additional 424,595 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Ashland during the fourth quarter worth about $28,943,000. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in Ashland by 48.7% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,228,525 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $72,839,000 after purchasing an additional 402,286 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

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.