Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Purchases New Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 10,273 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $734,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Ashland in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in Ashland in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Ashland in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in Ashland by 610.5% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 540 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ashland in the 3rd quarter valued at about $72,000. 93.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ashland Stock Performance

ASH opened at $60.72 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 2.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $2.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -92.00, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.86. Ashland Inc. has a 52-week low of $60.51 and a 52-week high of $102.50. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.79.

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

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 1st will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is currently -245.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on ASH. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Ashland from $81.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Ashland from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ashland currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.57.

Insider Transactions at Ashland

In other news, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total value of $35,209.57. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. This trade represents a 3.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Guillermo Novo purchased 31,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $64.24 per share, for a total transaction of $2,010,326.56. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 31,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,010,326.56. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

About Ashland

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.