Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. Purchases Shares of 58,077 Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 58,077 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $5,051,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. owned about 0.12% of Ashland as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ASH. Norden Group LLC bought a new stake in Ashland in the first quarter valued at about $224,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Ashland by 40.6% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 12,139 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 3,507 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Ashland during the first quarter valued at approximately $140,000. Duality Advisers LP grew its holdings in shares of Ashland by 79.3% during the first quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 11,557 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,125,000 after purchasing an additional 5,113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Ashland during the first quarter valued at approximately $624,000. 93.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ASH traded up $0.50 during trading on Monday, hitting $85.32. The company had a trading volume of 265,666 shares, compared to its average volume of 413,759. The business's 50-day moving average is $86.49 and its 200 day moving average is $91.92. 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 52 week low of $71.55 and a 52 week high of $102.50. The company has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.01, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.88.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $1.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.45 by $0.04. Ashland had a net margin of 7.01% and a return on equity of 5.98%. The company had revenue of $544.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $577.08 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. The company's revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, September 1st were paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ashland from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. 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. BMO Capital Markets cut 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. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded 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 six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $103.50.

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.