JPMorgan analyst Jeffrey Zekauskas downgraded Ashland to Underweight from Neutral with a price target of $105, up from $104. Ashland faces challenges in fiscal 2023 with volumes contracting in Q1 due to inventory destocking and weak demand in the European and China Personal Care and coatings markets, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The company may decrease production rates to lower its inventory values, which can weigh on profits, says the firm. It thinks a likely "flattening out" of EBITDA growth in fiscal 2023 will make it difficult for Ashland shares to keep pace with the market in the year-ahead.
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Published first on TheFly
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