Ashland (ASH) Competitors $53.14 -0.18 (-0.33%) As of 01:09 PM Eastern This is a fair market value 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, IOSP, and MTXShould 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), Innospec (IOSP), and Minerals Technologies (MTX). 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 Innospec Minerals Technologies Ashland (NYSE:ASH) and Albemarle (NYSE:ALB) are both mid-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, media sentiment, institutional ownership and profitability. Which has better earnings and valuation, 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$1.87B1.30$169M-$18.73-2.83Albemarle$4.99B1.73-$1.18B-$9.32-7.87 Does the media refer more to ASH or ALB? In the previous week, Ashland had 25 more articles in the media than Albemarle. MarketBeat recorded 34 mentions for Ashland and 9 mentions for Albemarle. Albemarle's average media sentiment score of 1.36 beat Ashland's score of 0.44 indicating that Albemarle is being referred to more favorably in the news media. Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment Ashland 13 Very Positive mention(s) 6 Positive mention(s) 11 Neutral mention(s) 3 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Neutral Albemarle 8 Very Positive mention(s) 0 Positive mention(s) 0 Neutral mention(s) 1 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Do analysts rate ASH or ALB? Ashland presently has a consensus price target of $61.43, suggesting a potential upside of 15.92%. Albemarle has a consensus price target of $86.47, suggesting a potential upside of 17.89%. Given Albemarle's higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Albemarle is more favorable than Ashland.Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Ashland 0 Sell rating(s) 4 Hold rating(s) 3 Buy rating(s) 0 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.43Albemarle 4 Sell rating(s) 10 Hold rating(s) 3 Buy rating(s) 0 Strong Buy rating(s) 1.94 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% Is ASH or ALB a better dividend stock? Ashland pays an annual dividend of $1.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Albemarle pays an annual dividend of $1.62 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. 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 raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years and Albemarle has raised its dividend for 30 consecutive years. Which has more volatility and risk, ASH or ALB? Ashland has a beta of 0.52, indicating that its share price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Albemarle has a beta of 1.64, indicating that its share price is 64% more volatile than the S&P 500. Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of ASH or ALB? 93.9% of Ashland shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.9% of Albemarle shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.0% of Ashland shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Albemarle shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. SummaryAshland and Albemarle tied by winning 9 of the 18 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$2.42B$15.51B$3.58B$21.42BDividend Yield3.02%1.87%5.07%3.50%P/E Ratio-2.8352.91157.7329.52Price / Sales1.303.1215,999.8367.82Price / Cash5.2913.6024.2824.61Price / Book0.903.246.664.54Net Income$169M$423.39M$149.32M$999.91M7 Day Performance-1.95%0.51%2.20%0.96%1 Month Performance1.76%5.45%9.85%5.23%1 Year Performance-37.30%13.57%48.91%16.73% Ashland Competitors List Export to ExcelCompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)ASHAshland4.5419 of 5 stars$52.99-0.6%$61.43+15.9%-37.6%$2.42B$1.87B-2.833,200Analyst ForecastALBAlbemarle4.0634 of 5 stars$81.95+0.5%$86.47+5.5%-7.4%$9.60B$5.38B-8.798,300Positive NewsCBTCabot4.4445 of 5 stars$80.96-0.1%$92.33+14.1%-20.0%$4.31B$3.99B10.584,200Positive NewsFULH. B. Fuller4.2643 of 5 stars$62.71+0.5%$67.25+7.2%-22.9%$3.37B$3.57B33.907,500NEUNewMarket1.9584 of 5 stars$828.26+1.8%N/A+42.4%$7.64B$2.79B16.422,060News CoveragePositive NewsCECelanese4.287 of 5 stars$46.44-4.7%$57.22+23.2%-62.9%$5.34B$9.94B-3.1312,163Positive NewsAnalyst ForecastBCPCBalchem4.2624 of 5 stars$162.13+0.6%$189.00+16.6%-5.2%$5.23B$953.68M37.191,361SXTSensient Technologies3.8307 of 5 stars$113.19+0.3%$110.00-2.8%+50.8%$4.79B$1.56B35.714,014Positive NewsKWRQuaker Houghton2.8674 of 5 stars$143.99-0.3%$150.75+4.7%-11.6%$2.51B$1.84B-334.854,400Positive NewsIOSPInnospec3.3309 of 5 stars$85.20-0.6%N/A-21.4%$2.13B$1.85B109.232,450Positive NewsShort Interest ↑MTXMinerals Technologies3.9918 of 5 stars$64.07-0.1%$84.00+31.1%-12.2%$2.01B$2.12B1,067.933,891 Related Companies and Tools Related Companies Albemarle Alternatives Cabot Alternatives H. B. Fuller Alternatives NewMarket Alternatives Celanese Alternatives Balchem Alternatives Sensient Technologies Alternatives Quaker Houghton Alternatives Innospec Alternatives Minerals Technologies Alternatives Top 10 Stock Comparisons Semiconductor Stocks Artificial Intelligence Stocks Growth Stocks Magnificent Seven Stocks Pharmaceutical Stocks Ecommerce Stocks Bitcoin Stocks Meme Stocks Cryptocurrency Stocks Cybersecurity Stocks This page (NYSE:ASH) was last updated on 9/10/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff From Our PartnersStunning new initiative unfolding in the White House?what I just learned about what’s unfolding in the White House is truly stunning… And you need to see it for...Paradigm Press | Sponsored6-Figure Target for BTC by 2025Trump Just Signed the GENIUS Act—One Coin is About to Explode We're at the BEGINNING of smart money really ...Crypto 101 Media | SponsoredTrump’s reported death a hoaxHow Trump’s latest policies could trigger a full-scale debt collapse… And the specific investments that cou...Porter & Company | SponsoredWorld War 3? 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