Blue Trust Inc. Increases Stake in Ashland Inc. $ASH

Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 44.4% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,291 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Ashland were worth $65,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ASH. Abound Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Ashland during the second quarter valued at $40,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in Ashland by 2,736.0% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 709 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 684 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Ashland by 63.9% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 834 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Ashland by 93.5% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,155 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Ashland by 2,440.4% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,321 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,269 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Stock Performance

Ashland stock opened at $48.94 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Ashland Inc. has a 52 week low of $45.21 and a 52 week high of $88.89. The company has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.12 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $51.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $51.34.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 9th. The basic materials company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $509.00 million during the quarter. Ashland had a positive return on equity of 6.82% and a negative net margin of 46.01%. Ashland has set its FY 2022 guidance at EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 1st were given a dividend of $0.415 per share. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -8.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASH has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 12th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Ashland from $73.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research raised Ashland from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Ashland from $53.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Ashland in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.43.

Ashland 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.