Insider Selling: Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) VP Sells 451 Shares of Stock

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total transaction of $35,209.57. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 14,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,107,188.74. The trade was a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Ashland Trading Down 0.5 %

ASH opened at $75.89 on Wednesday. Ashland Inc. has a 1-year low of $74.89 and a 1-year high of $102.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $81.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $88.40.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.02). Ashland had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The company had revenue of $522.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $524.07 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.36%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ashland

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASH. CWM LLC lifted its position in Ashland by 311.5% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,251 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $213,000 after acquiring an additional 1,704 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 22.2% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,626 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,004,000 after buying an additional 1,933 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ashland during the second quarter valued at approximately $713,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Ashland during the second quarter worth $251,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in Ashland in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,423,000. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ASH shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Ashland from $92.00 to $83.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $103.29.

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.