FY2024 EPS Estimates for Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Raised by Analyst

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) – Research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn boosted their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Ashland in a report released on Tuesday, July 16th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst M. Harrison now forecasts that the basic materials company will earn $4.86 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $4.83. The consensus estimate for Ashland’s current full-year earnings is $4.55 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Ashland’s FY2025 earnings at $6.13 EPS.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on ASH. Mizuho upped their target price on Ashland from $101.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Ashland from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Ashland from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $100.00 to $112.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Ashland from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Ashland from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $107.88.

Ashland Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:ASH opened at $96.71 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $97.11 and its 200 day moving average is $93.41. The company has a market cap of $4.85 billion, a PE ratio of 25.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 3.15 and a quick ratio of 1.94. Ashland has a 1 year low of $70.82 and a 1 year high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $575.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $574.64 million. Ashland had a return on equity of 5.57% and a net margin of 9.09%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.43 EPS.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Ashland by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,658,237 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $224,118,000 after purchasing an additional 62,182 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Ashland by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,424,801 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $204,435,000 after acquiring an additional 164,468 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 9.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 149,483 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,671,593 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $140,932,000 after acquiring an additional 256,828 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ashland by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC now owns 689,517 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $58,133,000 after purchasing an additional 21,667 shares during the period. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, June 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.68%. This is a boost from Ashland’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 31st. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.97%.

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.