Ashland (ASH) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $2.72B
• Dividend Yield: 2.77%
• Average Volume (3M): 1.01M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): ―
• Beta (1Y): 0.95
• Revenue Growth: -13.67%
• EPS Growth: -608.89%
• Country: US
• Employees: 3,200
• Sector: Basic Materials
• Sector Strength: 58
• Industry: Chemicals - Specialty
• EPS (TTM): 1.08
• Shares Outstanding: 45,762,100
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 1,095,187
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 1,014,382
• PEG Ratio: <0.01
• Price to Book (P/B): 1.16
• Price to Sales (P/S): 1.21
• P/FCF Ratio: -550.97
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.26
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 1.88
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 6.25
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: -6.70
• 1Y Price Target: $62.80
• Price Target Upside: 5.58% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Moderate Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 5
• EPS Forecast (FY): 3.96
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $1.87B

• Rating: 61 Neutral
• Price Target: $61.00 ▲(2.56% Upside)

Ashland's overall stock score reflects significant profitability challenges and unattractive valuation, partially offset by strong technical momentum and positive earnings call sentiment. The company's ability to maintain margins and improve cash flow is a positive, but profitability issues and valuation concerns weigh heavily on the score.

Positive Factors

Strong Cash Flow Growth

The significant growth in free cash flow indicates robust cash generation ability, enhancing financial flexibility and supporting long-term investments.

Resilient Performance in Key Segments

Success in Life Sciences and Personal Care segments demonstrates Ashland's ability to capitalize on high-demand areas, supporting sustained revenue growth.

Manufacturing Optimization

The ongoing manufacturing optimization program is expected to enhance operational efficiency, contributing to improved margins and long-term profitability.

Negative Factors

Declining Revenue

The decline in revenue growth reflects challenges in maintaining sales momentum, potentially impacting future earnings and market position.

Profitability Challenges

Ongoing profitability issues, as indicated by negative margins, could hinder Ashland's ability to reinvest in growth and maintain competitive advantage.

Weak Demand in Specialty Additives

Weak demand in key markets for Specialty Additives could limit growth prospects and pressure margins, affecting long-term segment performance.

Ashland Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Ashland Inc. provides additives and specialty ingredients worldwide. It operates through Life Sciences; Personal Care & Household; Specialty Additives; and Intermediates and Solvents 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. The Personal Care & Household segment provides a range of nature-based, biodegradable, and performance ingredients; solutions for toothpastes, mouth washes and rinses, denture cleaning, and care for teeth; and household supplies nature-derived rheology ingredients, biodegradable surface wetting agents, performance encapsulates, and specialty polymers. The Specialty Additives segment offers rheology modifiers, foam control agents, surfactants and wetting agents, pH neutralizers, advanced ceramics used in catalytic converters, environmental filters, ingredients for the manufacturing of ceramic capacitors, plasma display panels and solar cells, ingredients for textile printing, thermoplastic metals, and alloys for welding. The Intermediates and Solvents segment produces 1,4 butanediol and related derivatives, including n-methylpyrrolidone. It offers its products to customers in a range of consumer and industrial markets, such as architectural coatings, construction, energy, food and beverage, nutraceuticals, personal care, and pharmaceutical. The company was formerly known as Ashland Global Holdings Inc. Ashland Inc. was founded in 1924 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.

How the Company Makes Money

Ashland generates revenue through the sale of its specialty chemicals and additives across various sectors. The company's revenue model is primarily based on the direct sale of products to manufacturers and businesses in key industries. Key revenue streams include specialty additives that improve product performance, as well as performance materials that serve applications in construction and automotive. Additionally, Ashland benefits from significant partnerships with major companies in its target markets, which help drive sales and expand its reach. The company also focuses on innovation and product development to meet evolving customer needs, thus enhancing its competitive edge and revenue potential.

Ashland Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Ashland faces significant profitability challenges, with a negative net profit margin and declining revenue. The balance sheet shows moderate leverage, but the negative return on equity is concerning. Cash flow improvements are positive, yet profitability issues need addressing.

Income Statement

Ashland's income statement shows significant challenges, with a negative net profit margin of -46.19% and declining revenue growth of -2.35% in the TTM. The company has struggled with profitability, as indicated by negative EBIT and EBITDA margins. However, the gross profit margin remains relatively stable at 30.08%, suggesting some operational efficiency.

Balance Sheet

The balance sheet reflects moderate financial stability with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, indicating manageable leverage. However, the return on equity is negative at -37.70%, highlighting profitability issues. The equity ratio is not explicitly calculated, but the company maintains a reasonable level of equity relative to its assets.

Cash Flow

Cash flow analysis reveals a strong free cash flow growth of 96.61% in the TTM, which is a positive sign. However, the operating cash flow to net income ratio is low at 0.32, indicating potential challenges in converting income into cash. The free cash flow to net income ratio is also modest at 0.27, suggesting limited cash generation relative to net income.

Breakdown	TTM	Dec 2025	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022
Income Statement
Total Revenue	1.82B	―	1.82B	2.11B	2.19B	2.39B
Gross Profit	549.00M	―	549.00M	618.00M	668.00M	830.00M
EBITDA	-512.00M	―	-509.00M	303.00M	457.00M	509.00M
Net Income	-844.00M	―	-845.00M	169.00M	178.00M	927.00M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	4.62B	―	4.61B	5.64B	5.94B	6.21B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	207.00M	―	215.00M	300.00M	417.00M	646.00M
Total Debt	1.49B	―	1.49B	1.47B	1.46B	1.38B
Total Liabilities	2.73B	―	2.71B	2.78B	2.84B	2.99B
Stockholders Equity	1.89B	―	1.90B	2.87B	3.10B	3.22B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	116.00M	―	-4.00M	274.00M	73.00M	-326.00M
Operating Cash Flow	200.00M	―	94.00M	411.00M	243.00M	-213.00M
Investing Cash Flow	-63.00M	―	-3.00M	-51.00M	-109.00M	1.56B
Financing Cash Flow	-231.00M	―	-179.00M	-479.00M	-371.00M	-896.00M

Ashland Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 59.48
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For ASH, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 59.48 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 57.38, above the 50-day MA of 52.55, and above the 200-day MA of 51.58, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 2.21 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 63.80 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 48.28 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for ASH.

Ashland Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
WDFC	73 Outperform	$2.74B	30.33	36.39%	1.87%	4.98%	30.84%
Sector *	61 Neutral	$10.43B	7.12	-0.05%	2.87%	2.86%	-36.73%
ASH	61 Neutral	$2.72B	-3.26	-34.45%	2.77%	-13.67%	-608.89%
KWR	58 Neutral	$2.51B	-281.98	-0.64%	1.37%	0.08%	-107.33%
NGVT	58 Neutral	$2.11B	―	-38.91%	―	-13.39%	88.25%
IOSP	54 Neutral	$1.92B	-1,324.49	-0.09%	2.20%	-4.49%	-100.80%
CC	49 Neutral	$1.77B	-5.41	-69.74%	4.27%	2.12%	-579.74%

Ashland Corporate Events

Ashland Reports Q4 2025 Results Amid Sales Decline

Ashland Inc. reported its fourth-quarter fiscal 2025 results, showing a sales decline to $478 million, down eight percent from the previous year, primarily due to Portfolio Optimization initiatives. Despite challenging market conditions, Ashland maintained strong margins and delivered consistent revenue and EBITDA, with growth in Personal Care and Life Sciences segments. The company received a $103 million tax refund related to the Nutraceuticals divestiture, strengthening its financial position. Ashland’s strategic focus on cost management and portfolio alignment positions it for future profit growth.

Ashland Board Member Sergio Pedreiro Resigns

On September 16, 2025, Sergio Pedreiro resigned from Ashland, Inc.’s Board of Directors, including his roles on the Compensation Committee and as Chair of the Audit Committee, effective September 30, 2025. His resignation led to a reduction in the Board’s size from nine to eight members, and it was clarified that his departure was not due to any disagreements with the company’s practices.