The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Makes New $2.77 Million Investment in Ashland Inc. $ASH

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Ashland Inc. (NYSE:ASH) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 42,021 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,769,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.09% of Ashland at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ashland by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,215 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its holdings in Ashland by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 11,039 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $614,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its position in Ashland by 6.3% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,815 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Ashland by 59.0% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 671 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Ashland by 11.4% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,457 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.95% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective 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. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Ashland from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Ashland from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Ashland from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners upgraded Ashland from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $75.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.90.

Ashland Stock Up 3.1%

Shares of ASH stock opened at $75.57 on Wednesday. Ashland Inc. has a one year low of $46.29 and a one year high of $78.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 3.05 and a quick ratio of 1.89. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $70.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.85. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.39.

Ashland Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. Ashland’s dividend payout ratio is currently 147.37%.

Ashland News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Ashland this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Ashland will host an Innovation Day webcast on September 17 for analysts and investors. Management plans to discuss its technology platforms, commercial progress, scalability and expanding opportunities in personal care, life sciences, intermediates and specialty additives. The event could provide a near-term catalyst if executives outline credible growth initiatives, innovation-related revenue opportunities or improved returns on research spending. Ashland to host Innovation Day for analysts and investors
• Neutral Sentiment: The webcast will include presentations from CEO Guillermo Novo, CFO William Whitaker and other senior executives, followed by investor Q&A. While the event signals management engagement and confidence in Ashland’s innovation pipeline, the announcement contains no new earnings forecast, contract, product launch or specific financial targets. The market may therefore wait for more concrete details before assigning a higher valuation.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation remains a risk after the recent advance. Ashland’s reported P/E ratio is approximately 66, while the cited analyst median price target of $65 is below the recent trading level around $75.57. If Innovation Day fails to demonstrate sufficient growth or profitability improvements, investors could question whether the current premium valuation is justified.

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.