New York State Teachers Retirement System Lowers Stock Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lowered its stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,471 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 3,482 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned 0.12% of Ashland worth $5,346,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in shares of Ashland by 78.3% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 41,515 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,610,000 after acquiring an additional 18,230 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Ashland by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,975 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Ashland by 59.3% during the 3rd quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,128 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in Ashland by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,737,738 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $151,131,000 after purchasing an additional 103,517 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Ashland by 18.5% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 118,226 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,282,000 after buying an additional 18,449 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of Ashland stock opened at $84.98 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $86.42 and its 200 day moving average is $91.85. Ashland Inc. has a one year low of $71.55 and a one year high of $102.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.98. The stock has a market cap of $4.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.88.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $544.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $577.08 million. Ashland had a net margin of 7.01% and a return on equity of 5.98%. The firm’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st were given a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Ashland’s payout ratio is 54.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ASH has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Ashland from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Ashland from $105.00 to $92.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $103.50.

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.