Evercore ISI Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Ashland (NYSE:ASH) Stock Price

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) had its target price decreased by research analysts at Evercore ISI from $62.00 to $53.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “in-line” rating on the basic materials company’s stock. Evercore ISI’s target price suggests a potential upside of 5.89% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on ASH. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ashland from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Ashland from $52.00 to $51.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Ashland from $73.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Ashland from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Ashland in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.38.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of ASH opened at $50.05 on Tuesday. Ashland has a 1 year low of $45.21 and a 1 year high of $80.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.29 billion, a PE ratio of -2.67, a PEG ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a current ratio of 2.68. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $50.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.23.

Ashland (NYSE:ASH) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 9th. The basic materials company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter. Ashland had a negative net margin of 46.01% and a positive return on equity of 6.82%. The firm had revenue of $509.00 million for the quarter. Ashland has set its FY 2022 guidance at EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ashland will post 4.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Ashland

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its stake in Ashland by 85.6% in the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 6,567 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $389,000 after purchasing an additional 3,029 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ashland by 42.7% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 56,109 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $3,327,000 after buying an additional 16,779 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in Ashland by 63.9% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 834 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Ashland by 52.8% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 15,990 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $948,000 after acquiring an additional 5,525 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in Ashland by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 83,363 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $4,943,000 after acquiring an additional 2,877 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

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.