Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) was the target of a large growth in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,060,000 shares, a growth of 6.0% from the November 15th total of 1,000,000 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 444,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.4 days.

Insider Transactions at Ashland

In related news, SVP Robin E. Lampkin sold 868 shares of Ashland stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,585.70. This trade represents a 23.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Eric N. Boni sold 451 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.07, for a total transaction of $35,209.57. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 14,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,188.74. The trade was a 3.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ashland in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Ashland by 193.1% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 381 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Ashland during the 3rd quarter worth $38,000. Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Ashland by 610.5% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 540 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Ashland in the second quarter valued at approximately $71,000. 93.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ashland Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ASH traded down $0.67 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $73.08. 443,563 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 422,204. Ashland has a 52 week low of $72.83 and a 52 week high of $102.50. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $80.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $87.50. The company has a market cap of $3.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.44.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued 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). The firm had revenue of $522.00 million during 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 firm’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.41 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ashland will post 4.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 15th. Investors of record on Sunday, December 1st were issued a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ASH. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Ashland from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Ashland from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ashland from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.00.

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.