Hexagon Capital Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 143.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 378 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Ashland were worth $32,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Ashland by 17.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 4,592 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $375,000 after acquiring an additional 682 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in Ashland by 4.7% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 6,576 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in Ashland by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 9,914 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $810,000 after buying an additional 1,139 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 24.0% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,822 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 546 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steph & Co. boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 4,005 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $327,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on ASH. UBS Group upped their price objective on Ashland from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ashland from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Ashland in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $108.00 price target for the company. TheStreet upgraded shares of Ashland from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Ashland from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.11.

Ashland Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE ASH opened at $95.81 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.41 and a beta of 0.92. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.85. Ashland Inc. has a 12-month low of $70.82 and a 12-month high of $99.55. The company has a current ratio of 3.15, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.13. Ashland had a net margin of 9.09% and a return on equity of 5.57%. The firm had revenue of $575.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $574.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.