Schear Investment Advisers LLC Sells 922 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Schear Investment Advisers LLC decreased its stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 16.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 922 shares during the quarter. Schear Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Ashland were worth $405,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in Ashland during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Ashland during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Ashland by 338.0% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 403 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. KB Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ashland in the first quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Ashland during the first quarter worth $44,000. 93.95% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ashland Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Ashland stock traded up $0.41 during trading on Friday, hitting $95.90. 187,407 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 450,449. The company has a current ratio of 3.30, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.51. The firm has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.36 and a beta of 0.92. Ashland Inc. has a 52-week low of $70.82 and a 52-week high of $104.64.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $473.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $478.69 million. Ashland had a net margin of 7.62% and a return on equity of 5.95%. The company’s revenue was down 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.97 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.385 dividend. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Ashland from $70.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. StockNews.com raised Ashland from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $100.00 to $126.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Ashland from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $100.00 to $112.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Ashland from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.00.

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.