Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Shares Acquired by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 29.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 171,636 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 39,392 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.36% of Ashland worth $12,265,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in Ashland by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 5,613 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $401,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 47.1% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 577,633 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $41,247,000 after acquiring an additional 184,954 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 25.0% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 156,050 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $11,151,000 after acquiring an additional 31,200 shares during the last quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ashland by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Hilton Capital Management LLC now owns 15,162 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 661 shares during the period. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in Ashland during the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ASH has been the subject of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ashland from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Ashland from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Ashland from $80.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $85.40.

Ashland Stock Down 7.5 %

Shares of ASH traded down $4.00 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $49.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,426,705 shares, compared to its average volume of 496,350. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company's 50-day moving average is $60.91 and its 200-day moving average is $72.46. Ashland Inc. has a 52-week low of $47.29 and a 52-week high of $102.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -74.36, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.70.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.51). Ashland had a positive return on equity of 7.41% and a negative net margin of 1.12%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.45 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st were issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. Ashland's dividend payout ratio is presently -245.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ashland

In other news, CEO Guillermo Novo acquired 31,294 shares of Ashland stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $64.24 per share, for a total transaction of $2,010,326.56. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 31,294 shares in the company, valued at $2,010,326.56. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.02% of the company's stock.

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.