Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Raises Stock Position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) by 3.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,773,170 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 86,977 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 5.53% of Ashland worth $262,037,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,314,387 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $218,686,000 after purchasing an additional 198,913 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in Ashland by 9.0% during the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,806,137 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $175,864,000 after buying an additional 149,483 shares during the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Ashland by 4.2% during the first quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 657,010 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $63,973,000 after buying an additional 26,245 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Ashland by 1.2% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 547,909 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $51,772,000 after acquiring an additional 6,598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 20.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 546,832 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $53,246,000 after purchasing an additional 94,013 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company's stock.

Ashland Price Performance

NYSE:ASH traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $87.25. The stock had a trading volume of 373,746 shares, compared to its average volume of 412,334. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.98. Ashland Inc. has a one year low of $70.82 and a one year high of $102.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $89.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $94.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.88.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.04. Ashland had a return on equity of 5.98% and a net margin of 7.01%. The business had revenue of $544.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $577.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Ashland Inc. will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, September 1st were issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 30th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio is currently 42.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASH has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Ashland from $105.00 to $92.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ashland from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.50.

Ashland Company 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.