Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Has $756,000 Stock Holdings in Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) by 46.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,750 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,058 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Ashland were worth $756,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ashland in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $273,000. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. acquired a new stake in Ashland in the first quarter valued at $369,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Ashland by 46.2% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 20,032 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after acquiring an additional 6,332 shares during the last quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. lifted its stake in Ashland by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Great Lakes Retirement Inc. now owns 10,087 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $598,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Ashland by 276.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,392 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $735,000 after purchasing an additional 9,100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of ASH stock opened at $50.73 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.14, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $50.70 and a 200-day moving average of $58.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Ashland Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.21 and a 1-year high of $98.44.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.10 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $479.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $514.79 million. Ashland had a positive return on equity of 7.14% and a negative net margin of 5.74%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.27 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ashland Inc. will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Ashland Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.415 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This is a boost from Ashland’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.27%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -69.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ASH. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Ashland from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group cut their price target on Ashland from $85.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Mizuho set a $60.00 price target on Ashland in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Ashland from $71.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut shares of Ashland from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Ashland has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $68.60.

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.