HighTower Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 6.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 7,522 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 536 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Ashland were worth $538,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in Ashland by 465.0% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 42,287 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,678,000 after purchasing an additional 34,802 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in Ashland by 88.6% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 82,383 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $7,165,000 after buying an additional 38,692 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its holdings in Ashland by 87.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 71,380 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $6,208,000 after buying an additional 33,271 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Ashland by 138.6% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 120,741 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $10,501,000 after buying an additional 70,145 shares during the period. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Ashland in the third quarter worth $3,134,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ASH. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Ashland from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Ashland from $80.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $85.40.

Ashland Price Performance

ASH stock opened at $58.99 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $62.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $73.63. 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 stock has a market cap of $2.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -89.38, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.89. Ashland Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $54.86 and a fifty-two week high of $102.50.

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

Ashland Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Ashland’s payout ratio is -245.45%.

Insider Transactions at Ashland

In other Ashland news, CEO Guillermo Novo bought 31,294 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $64.24 per share, for a total transaction of $2,010,326.56. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Ashland 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.