75,292 Shares in Ashland Inc. $ASH Bought by Kingsview Wealth Management LLC

Kingsview Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 75,292 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,961,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ashland by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,215 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 181 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Ashland by 1.8% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 11,039 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in Ashland by 6.3% in the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $226,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Ashland by 59.0% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in Ashland by 11.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $124,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Ashland Stock Performance

Shares of ASH opened at $74.21 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $69.68 and a 200-day moving average of $61.68. Ashland Inc. has a one year low of $46.29 and a one year high of $78.25. The company has a market cap of $3.40 billion, a PE ratio of 65.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 3.05 and a quick ratio of 1.89.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 147.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ASH shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Ashland from $68.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Ashland from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Ashland from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Ashland from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Ashland in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.90.

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.