Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 7,186 Shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Geode Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 820,456 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 7,186 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.74% of Ashland worth $58,648,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ASH. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Ashland by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,928,924 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $352,221,000 after buying an additional 66,530 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Ashland by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,022,580 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $73,074,000 after acquiring an additional 142,121 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Ashland by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 702,561 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $50,205,000 after purchasing an additional 26,267 shares during the period. Boston Partners lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 184,954 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Ashland by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 517,266 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $36,964,000 after acquiring an additional 7,709 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on ASH shares. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Ashland from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Ashland from $69.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Ashland from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the company from $68.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Mizuho set a $60.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ashland has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $73.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Guillermo Novo bought 31,294 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were acquired at an average cost 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 of the company's stock, valued at $2,010,326.56. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of ASH stock traded up $0.90 during trading on Friday, reaching $50.45. 404,331 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 510,406. The firm's 50-day moving average is $57.49 and its 200 day moving average is $69.91. The company has a market capitalization of $2.38 billion, a P/E ratio of -76.44, a PEG ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.70. Ashland Inc. has a 1 year low of $45.21 and a 1 year high of $102.50. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 company posted $0.45 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 1st were given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio is presently -245.45%.

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.