Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Given New $69.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) had its price target decreased by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $80.00 to $69.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price points to a potential upside of 16.96% from the stock’s current price.

ASH has been the subject of several other research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Seaport Res Ptn cut Ashland from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ashland from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.40.

Ashland Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Ashland stock opened at $58.99 on Thursday. Ashland has a 12-month low of $54.86 and a 12-month high of $102.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a PE ratio of -89.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.89. 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’s fifty day moving average is $62.54 and its 200-day moving average is $73.71.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its earnings results 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 period last year, the business earned $0.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Ashland will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Ashland

In other news, CEO Guillermo Novo acquired 31,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $64.24 per share, with a total value of $2,010,326.56. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 31,294 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,010,326.56. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.02% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ashland by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,928,924 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $352,221,000 after acquiring an additional 66,530 shares during the last quarter. Eminence Capital LP raised its holdings in Ashland by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 2,860,471 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $204,409,000 after purchasing an additional 212,916 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Ashland by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,818,695 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $201,423,000 after purchasing an additional 44,018 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of Ashland by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,806,922 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $200,583,000 after buying an additional 208,320 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,022,580 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $73,074,000 after buying an additional 142,121 shares during the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.