Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $87.38, but opened at $80.01. Ashland shares last traded at $80.84, with a volume of 128,300 shares changing hands.

The basic materials company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.02). Ashland had a return on equity of 5.98% and a net margin of 7.01%. The company had revenue of $522.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $524.07 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share. Ashland’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Ashland from $105.00 to $92.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $103.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Ashland by 9.4% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,314,387 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $218,686,000 after buying an additional 198,913 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Ashland by 616.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 189,175 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $17,875,000 after buying an additional 162,776 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Ashland during the second quarter valued at $14,346,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in Ashland by 9.0% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,806,137 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $175,864,000 after buying an additional 149,483 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Ashland by 407.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 139,718 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $13,202,000 after buying an additional 112,169 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Trading Up 0.4 %

The company has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company’s 50-day moving average is $85.96 and its 200 day moving average is $91.56.

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.