Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Given New $84.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) had its price target lifted by BMO Capital Markets from $83.00 to $84.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a market perform rating on the basic materials company’s stock.

ASH has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com raised Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.00.

Ashland Stock Performance

Ashland stock opened at $74.78 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.52 billion, a PE ratio of 22.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.86. Ashland has a one year low of $72.83 and a one year high of $102.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $81.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.44.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $522.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $524.07 million. Ashland had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 7.95%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ashland will post 4.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Sunday, December 1st will be given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total value of $67,617.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at $224,585.70. This trade represents a 23.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total value of $35,209.57. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. The trade was a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in Ashland by 6,127.2% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 880,459 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $76,574,000 after acquiring an additional 866,320 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Ashland by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,598,602 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $226,000,000 after purchasing an additional 284,215 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Ashland by 616.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 189,175 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,875,000 after purchasing an additional 162,776 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Ashland during the second quarter valued at approximately $14,346,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Ashland by 407.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 139,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $13,202,000 after buying an additional 112,169 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.