Short Interest in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Increases By 19.1%

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 5,023,447 shares, an increase of 19.1% from the February 12th total of 4,217,547 shares. Currently, 11.1% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 807,071 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.2 days. Based on an average daily volume of 807,071 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 6.2 days. Currently, 11.1% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Ashland Stock Up 1.4%

Ashland stock traded up $0.70 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $50.67. The stock had a trading volume of 1,055,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 651,217. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 3.15. Ashland has a fifty-two week low of $45.21 and a fifty-two week high of $65.64. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $60.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a PE ratio of -3.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.42.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The basic materials company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.03. Ashland had a positive return on equity of 7.58% and a negative net margin of 38.26%.The company had revenue of $386.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $401.42 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.28 earnings per share. Ashland’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ashland will post 4.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.415 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 27th. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Ashland’s payout ratio is presently -10.99%.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASH. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,215 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank grew its holdings in Ashland by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 4,940 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $290,000 after buying an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC raised its position in Ashland by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 4,789 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $229,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Ashland by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $226,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Ashland by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,330 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Evercore set a $62.00 price target on Ashland in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of Ashland from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ashland from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $63.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Ashland from $77.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.67.

About Ashland

Ashland Inc is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and supplies a broad range of performance and process-critical additives, ingredients and technologies. Its portfolio spans performance additives for coatings, adhesives and sealants; specialty ingredients for personal care and pharmaceutical applications; and process aids used in water treatment and other industrial processes. Ashland aims to address customer challenges by delivering tailored solutions that improve product performance, processing efficiency and sustainability outcomes.

Founded in 1924 as the Ashland Oil & Refining Company, the firm gradually expanded into the specialty chemicals sector over the second half of the 20th century.