Ashland (ASH) Competitors $48.47 -0.13 (-0.27%) Closing price 03:59 PM EasternExtended Trading$48.50 +0.04 (+0.07%) As of 05:28 PM Eastern Extended trading is trading that happens on electronic markets outside of regular trading hours. This is a fair market value extended hours price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more. Add Compare Share Share Competitors Stock AnalysisAnalyst ForecastsChartCompetitorsDividendEarningsFinancialsHeadlinesInsider TradesOptions ChainOwnershipSEC FilingsShort InterestSustainabilityTrendsBuy This Stock ASH vs. ALB, CBT, FUL, NEU, CE, BCPC, SXT, KWR, MTX, and IOSPShould you be buying Ashland stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of Ashland include Albemarle (ALB), Cabot (CBT), H. B. Fuller (FUL), NewMarket (NEU), Celanese (CE), Balchem (BCPC), Sensient Technologies (SXT), Quaker Houghton (KWR), Minerals Technologies (MTX), and Innospec (IOSP). These companies are all part of the "basic materials" sector. Ashland vs. Its Competitors Albemarle Cabot H. B. Fuller NewMarket Celanese Balchem Sensient Technologies Quaker Houghton Minerals Technologies Innospec Ashland (NYSE:ASH) and Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, dividends, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, media sentiment and risk. Does the media favor ASH or ALB? In the previous week, Ashland had 11 more articles in the media than Albemarle. MarketBeat recorded 27 mentions for Ashland and 16 mentions for Albemarle. Albemarle's average media sentiment score of 1.44 beat Ashland's score of 0.13 indicating that Albemarle is being referred to more favorably in the news media. Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment Ashland 4 Very Positive mention(s) 7 Positive mention(s) 11 Neutral mention(s) 2 Negative mention(s) 2 Very Negative mention(s) Neutral Albemarle 12 Very Positive mention(s) 0 Positive mention(s) 0 Neutral mention(s) 0 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Is ASH or ALB a better dividend stock? Ashland pays an annual dividend of $1.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Albemarle pays an annual dividend of $1.62 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Ashland pays out -8.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Albemarle pays out -17.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Ashland has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years and Albemarle has increased its dividend for 30 consecutive years. Which has stronger valuation and earnings, ASH or ALB? Ashland has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Albemarle. Albemarle is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ashland, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings RatioAshland$2.11B1.05$169M-$18.73-2.59Albemarle$5.38B2.11-$1.18B-$9.32-10.34 Which has more volatility & risk, ASH or ALB? Ashland has a beta of 0.49, indicating that its stock price is 51% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Albemarle has a beta of 1.65, indicating that its stock price is 65% more volatile than the S&P 500. Do analysts recommend ASH or ALB? Ashland currently has a consensus target price of $60.57, indicating a potential upside of 24.97%. Albemarle has a consensus target price of $87.35, indicating a potential downside of 9.39%. Given Ashland's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Ashland is more favorable than Albemarle.Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Ashland 1 Sell rating(s) 5 Hold rating(s) 4 Buy rating(s) 0 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.30Albemarle 5 Sell rating(s) 13 Hold rating(s) 4 Buy rating(s) 1 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.04 Is ASH or ALB more profitable? Albemarle has a net margin of -18.61% compared to Ashland's net margin of -46.01%. Ashland's return on equity of 6.82% beat Albemarle's return on equity.Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Ashland-46.01% 6.82% 3.26% Albemarle -18.61%-1.87%-0.89% Do institutionals & insiders believe in ASH or ALB? 94.0% of Ashland shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.9% of Albemarle shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of Ashland shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Albemarle shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. SummaryAshland beats Albemarle on 10 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks. Get Ashland News Delivered to You Automatically Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for ASH and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter. Subscribe Now View SMS TermsBy entering your phone number and clicking the sign-up button, you agree to receive periodic text messages from MarketBeat at the phone number you submitted, including texts that may be sent using an automatic telephone dialing system. Message and data rates may apply. Message frequency will vary. Messages will consist of stock alerts, news stories, and partner advertisements/offers. Consent is not a condition of the purchase of any goods or services. Text HELP for help/customer support. Unsubscribe at any time by replying "STOP" to any text message that you receive from MarketBeat or by visiting our mailing preferences page. Read our full terms of service and privacy policy. New MarketBeat Followers Over TimeWhat are MarkeBeat Followers?This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding ASH and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period. Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over TimeWhat is Media Sentiment?This chart shows the average media sentiment of NYSE and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.Skip Chart ASH vs. The Competition Export to ExcelMetricAshlandCHEM IndustryMaterials SectorNYSE ExchangeMarket Cap$2.22B$14.94B$3.74B$21.85BDividend Yield3.50%1.91%5.04%3.61%P/E Ratio-2.5950.30157.7829.59Price / Sales1.053.0125,026.3963.42Price / Cash4.6012.9326.3524.43Price / Book0.833.087.204.61Net Income$169M$424.10M$148.88M$1.01B7 Day Performance-0.05%-1.86%3.84%-0.46%1 Month Performance-9.03%-5.03%13.88%2.31%1 Year Performance-42.74%0.22%64.55%14.52% Ashland Competitors List Export to ExcelCompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)ASHAshland4.6287 of 5 stars$48.47-0.3%$60.57+25.0%-42.0%$2.22B$2.11B-2.593,200Analyst ForecastALBAlbemarle3.1512 of 5 stars$92.08+4.4%$87.47-5.0%-8.6%$10.38B$5.38B-9.888,300Positive NewsAnalyst ForecastGap UpCBTCabot4.6295 of 5 stars$75.57+0.5%$85.00+12.5%-33.9%$4.00B$3.99B9.884,200Analyst ForecastFULH. B. Fuller4.6482 of 5 stars$59.07-0.4%$65.75+11.3%-21.9%$3.21B$3.57B31.937,500Dividend AnnouncementNEUNewMarket1.8988 of 5 stars$859.53+1.6%N/A+66.8%$7.95B$2.79B17.042,060Analyst ForecastCECelanese4.1509 of 5 stars$44.31-1.8%$56.33+27.1%-67.1%$4.94B$10.28B-2.9912,163Analyst ForecastBCPCBalchem4.8573 of 5 stars$143.16-1.4%$189.00+32.0%-16.1%$4.71B$953.68M32.831,361Analyst ForecastSXTSensient Technologies4.1147 of 5 stars$93.70-1.3%$110.00+17.4%+21.7%$4.03B$1.56B29.564,014Analyst ForecastKWRQuaker Houghton3.3975 of 5 stars$131.93-1.6%$150.75+14.3%-17.4%$2.33B$1.84B-306.804,400News CoverageAnalyst ForecastMTXMinerals Technologies3.144 of 5 stars$61.36-2.2%$84.00+36.9%-19.4%$1.97B$2.12B1,022.843,891Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastIOSPInnospec3.5078 of 5 stars$78.81+0.0%N/A-29.2%$1.96B$1.85B101.042,450News CoveragePositive NewsAnalyst Upgrade Related Companies and Tools Related Companies Albemarle Alternatives Cabot Alternatives H. B. 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