Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its holdings in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 11,472 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 640 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Ashland were worth $998,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in Ashland in the 2nd quarter valued at about $713,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Ashland by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 671,948 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $63,492,000 after acquiring an additional 14,938 shares during the period. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ashland in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,442,000. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 2.4% in the second quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 581,204 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $54,918,000 after acquiring an additional 13,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 28.7% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 99,777 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $9,428,000 after acquiring an additional 22,280 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ashland news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total value of $67,617.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at $224,585.70. This represents a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Price Performance

NYSE ASH opened at $80.25 on Tuesday. Ashland Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.04 and a 1 year high of $102.50. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $83.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.49. The company has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a PE ratio of 23.30, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $522.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $524.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ASH. StockNews.com lowered Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Ashland from $92.00 to $83.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ashland has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $103.29.

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.