Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $56.93, but opened at $59.01. Ashland shares last traded at $60.27, with a volume of 142,636 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Ashland from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered Ashland from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.60.

Ashland Stock Up 6.5 %

The business’s 50-day moving average is $63.22 and its 200-day moving average is $74.09. The company has a market capitalization of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -91.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.51). Ashland had a positive return on equity of 7.41% and a negative net margin of 1.12%. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -245.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ashland

In other Ashland news, CEO Guillermo Novo bought 31,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $64.24 per share, for a total transaction of $2,010,326.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 31,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,010,326.56. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.02% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,928,924 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $352,221,000 after buying an additional 66,530 shares during the period. Eminence Capital LP raised its position in shares of Ashland by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 2,860,471 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $204,409,000 after purchasing an additional 212,916 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Ashland by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,818,695 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $201,423,000 after buying an additional 44,018 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Ashland by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,806,922 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $200,583,000 after buying an additional 208,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Ashland by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,022,580 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $73,074,000 after buying an additional 142,121 shares in the last quarter. 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.