Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) to Issue $0.41 Quarterly Dividend

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, November 14th,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Sunday, December 1st will be paid a dividend of 0.405 per share by the basic materials company on Sunday, December 15th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th.

Ashland has increased its dividend payment by an average of 10.6% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 15 consecutive years. Ashland has a payout ratio of 33.3% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Ashland to earn $5.74 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.62 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 28.2%.

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ASH opened at $76.94 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.88. The business’s 50 day moving average is $84.99 and its 200-day moving average is $90.92. 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 1-year low of $75.90 and a 1-year high of $102.50.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last released 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 business had revenue of $522.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $524.07 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Ashland will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ASH has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Ashland from $105.00 to $92.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Ashland from $112.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ashland from $116.00 to $107.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Ashland from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ashland presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.57.

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.