Short Interest in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Rises By 6.0%

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) saw a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,060,000 shares, a growth of 6.0% from the November 15th total of 1,000,000 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 444,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Ashland in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Ashland by 193.1% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Ashland during the third quarter valued at $38,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Ashland in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $71,000. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ASH traded down $0.67 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $73.08. The company had a trading volume of 443,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 422,204. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.44. Ashland has a one year low of $72.83 and a one year high of $102.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.81, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.86. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $80.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $87.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.02). Ashland had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 7.95%. The firm had revenue of $522.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $524.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Ashland will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Sunday, December 1st were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. Ashland’s payout ratio is currently 48.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.00.

About Ashland

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.