Quest Partners LLC Buys 15,428 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Quest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 2,062.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,176 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 15,428 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Ashland were worth $1,407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ASH. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Ashland by 193.1% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Ashland by 610.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 540 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Ashland by 133.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 650 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ashland in the second quarter worth about $71,000. Finally, Ecofi Investissements SA purchased a new position in shares of Ashland during the second quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of ASH opened at $76.42 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.44. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $84.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $90.60. Ashland Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.48 and a fifty-two week high of $102.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.73 billion, a PE ratio of 22.81, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.88.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $522.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $524.07 million. Ashland had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 7.95%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ashland

In related news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total transaction of $67,617.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at $224,585.70. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Company 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.