Xponance Inc. Acquires 301 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,613 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Ashland were worth $401,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new position in Ashland in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Ashland in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Ashland in the fourth quarter worth approximately $56,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Ashland by 84.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 994 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Ashland during the 3rd quarter valued at $72,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Price Performance

NYSE:ASH opened at $59.79 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 2.52 and a quick ratio of 1.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $63.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.99. Ashland Inc. has a 1-year low of $54.86 and a 1-year high of $102.50. The firm has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -90.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.89.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the company posted $0.45 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Ashland’s payout ratio is -245.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on ASH. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Ashland from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Ashland from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.60.

Insider Activity

In other Ashland news, CEO Guillermo Novo acquired 31,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was bought at an average price of $64.24 per share, with a total value of $2,010,326.56. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 31,294 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,010,326.56. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.02% 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.