JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 67,980 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 66.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 169,618 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 67,980 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.36% of Ashland worth $14,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in Ashland by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 6,431 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $559,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 7,295 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $681,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. raised its holdings in Ashland by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 3,104 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning boosted its position in Ashland by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,867 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $460,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Ashland by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,532 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $307,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Ashland Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of Ashland stock traded down $1.61 on Friday, hitting $68.74. 366,696 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 472,183. The company has a fifty day moving average of $75.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $84.18. Ashland Inc. has a one year low of $68.54 and a one year high of $102.50. The company has a market capitalization of $3.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 2.44 and a quick ratio of 1.33.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.28 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $522.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $524.07 million. Ashland had a return on equity of 7.43% and a net margin of 7.95%. Ashland's quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.36%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target 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. StockNews.com lowered Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $102.00.

Insider Activity

In other Ashland news, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total transaction of $35,209.57. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 14,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. The trade was a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total transaction of $67,617.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,585.70. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company's stock.

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.