FY2025 EPS Estimates for Ashland Reduced by Seaport Res Ptn

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn cut their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Ashland in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, December 11th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst M. Harrison now anticipates that the basic materials company will earn $4.48 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $4.70. The consensus estimate for Ashland's current full-year earnings is $4.52 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Ashland's Q2 2026 earnings at $1.59 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $5.94 EPS.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on ASH. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ashland from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $102.00.

Ashland Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of ASH traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $74.31. The stock had a trading volume of 236,450 shares, compared to its average volume of 420,287. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.21. The firm has a market cap of $3.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Ashland has a fifty-two week low of $72.83 and a fifty-two week high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH - Get Free Report) last announced its 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). The company had revenue of $522.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $524.07 million. Ashland had a net margin of 7.95% and a return on equity of 7.43%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share.

Ashland Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 15th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Ashland's dividend payout ratio is 48.36%.

Insider Activity at Ashland

In other news, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total value of $35,209.57. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 14,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. This trade represents a 3.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.90, for a total transaction of $67,617.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at $224,585.70. This trade represents a 23.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Ashland by 3.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,773,170 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $262,037,000 after purchasing an additional 86,977 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Ashland by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,598,602 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $226,000,000 after buying an additional 284,215 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Ashland by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,737,738 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $151,131,000 after buying an additional 103,517 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 6,127.2% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 880,459 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $76,574,000 after acquiring an additional 866,320 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Ashland by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 827,642 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $72,000,000 after acquiring an additional 2,316 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.95% 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.