Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $75.00 to $83.00. The stock had previously closed at $68.01, but opened at $73.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Ashland shares last traded at $70.5030, with a volume of 186,752 shares.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on ASH. Mizuho boosted their price target on Ashland from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Ashland from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings cut Ashland from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Ashland from $60.00 to $50.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $58.00 target price on shares of Ashland in a report on Monday, May 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.40.

Key Stories Impacting Ashland

Here are the key news stories impacting Ashland this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ashland reached a cooperation agreement with activist investor Ancora, appointing two new directors. The settlement may reduce governance uncertainty and revive expectations that Ashland could pursue a sale or other strategic alternatives after pressure from Ancora and Cruiser Capital. Ashland announces appointment of two new directors
• Positive Sentiment: BMO Capital Markets raised its price target for ASH from $68 to $75 and reiterated an “outperform” rating. The new target implies modest additional upside from recent trading levels, reinforcing the view that operational improvements or strategic action could unlock value. BMO raises Ashland price target
• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal third-quarter sales benefited from volume growth across all business segments, while management highlighted continued efforts to improve cash generation and operating performance. Some analysts view Ashland as potentially undervalued following the quarter. Ashland Q3 sales beat estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional positioning was mixed, with 149 investors adding shares and 140 reducing positions in the latest reported quarter. This suggests divided views among large investors rather than a clear consensus.
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted third-quarter EPS of $1.02 narrowly missed the $1.03 consensus estimate and declined from $1.04 a year earlier. Profitability remained under pressure despite stronger sales, and Ashland lowered its fiscal 2026 EPS-growth outlook. Ashland Q3 earnings call highlights

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ashland

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ashland by 284.3% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,454,646 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $172,318,000 after purchasing an additional 2,555,585 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 13,240.8% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,736,173 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $101,861,000 after buying an additional 1,723,159 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Ashland by 775.6% in the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,900,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $111,473,000 after buying an additional 1,682,994 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in Ashland by 1,080,682.0% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,437,440 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $84,335,000 after buying an additional 1,437,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in Ashland by 1,804.0% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,021,264 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,918,000 after buying an additional 967,626 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Trading Down 0.2%

The company has a current ratio of 3.05, a quick ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $64.31 and its 200 day moving average is $60.09.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $482.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $485.61 million. Ashland had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 8.03%. The company’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Ashland Inc. will post 3.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Ashland’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Ashland’s payout ratio is currently 147.37%.

Ashland Company Profile

Ashland Inc is a global specialty chemicals company that develops, manufactures and supplies a broad range of performance and process-critical additives, ingredients and technologies. Its portfolio spans performance additives for coatings, adhesives and sealants; specialty ingredients for personal care and pharmaceutical applications; and process aids used in water treatment and other industrial processes. Ashland aims to address customer challenges by delivering tailored solutions that improve product performance, processing efficiency and sustainability outcomes.

Founded in 1924 as the Ashland Oil & Refining Company, the firm gradually expanded into the specialty chemicals sector over the second half of the 20th century.