Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Receives $59.38 Average Target Price from Analysts

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $59.3750.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on ASH shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Argus reduced their price objective on Ashland from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Ashland from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Ashland in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 24th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ASH. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in Ashland by 3,673.3% in the 3rd quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 566 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Ashland by 59.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 249 shares during the period. Abound Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Ashland in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in shares of Ashland by 63.9% in 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 during the period. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Ashland in the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Trading Down 3.0%

NYSE ASH opened at $51.51 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $49.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.23. Ashland has a 12 month low of $45.21 and a 12 month high of $80.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The company has a market capitalization of $2.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.49.

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. Ashland had a negative net margin of 46.01% and a positive return on equity of 6.82%. The firm had revenue of $509.00 million during the quarter. Ashland has set its FY 2022 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ashland will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.