BNP Paribas Financial Markets Has $7.17 Million Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 88.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 82,383 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 38,692 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned about 0.17% of Ashland worth $7,165,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Ashland during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Ashland by 193.1% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 381 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 464 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Ashland by 133.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 650 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Ashland in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $71,000. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ashland

In other news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total transaction of $67,617.20. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of ASH traded down $1.23 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $78.96. The stock had a trading volume of 141,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 419,027. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 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. The company's fifty day moving average is $83.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.36. Ashland Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.04 and a 52 week high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Ashland Inc. will post 4.66 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASH has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Ashland from $92.00 to $83.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ashland from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. StockNews.com downgraded Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered 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. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Ashland presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.29.

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.