Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Takes $2.73 Million Position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 31,402 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $2,731,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned 0.06% of Ashland as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ashland in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 2,062.6% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 16,176 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,407,000 after buying an additional 15,428 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ashland by 3.1% during the third quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 198,810 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $17,291,000 after buying an additional 5,913 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Ashland by 1.4% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 75,575 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $6,573,000 after buying an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in Ashland during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,300,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ashland from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Ashland from $92.00 to $83.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Ashland currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.29.

Ashland Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE ASH traded up $0.72 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $79.77. 548,942 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 421,007. The company's fifty day moving average is $84.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $90.05. 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 Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.04 and a fifty-two week high of $102.50. The stock has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a PE ratio of 23.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.88.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.28 by ($0.02). Ashland had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The company had revenue of $522.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $524.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.41 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio is 48.36%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ashland news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of Ashland stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total value of $67,617.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,883 shares of the company's stock, valued at $224,585.70. The trade was a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.69% 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.