Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.51 EPS

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The basic materials company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.51), RTT News reports. Ashland had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 7.43%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. Ashland updated its FY 2025 guidance to EPS.

Ashland Price Performance

ASH opened at $71.00 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.87. Ashland has a fifty-two week low of $68.14 and a fifty-two week high of $102.50. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $73.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ASH has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ashland news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,585.70. This represents a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total transaction of $35,209.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 14,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. This trade represents a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.